Railway accidents and deaths down over last decade

Take note – story published 2 years ago

Between 2010 and 2020, the number of significant railway accidents in the EU fell by 40% to 1,331 accidents, 898 fewer than in 2010, according to new data published by Eurostat.

"Although this number has been gradually decreasing over this period, the decrease in 2020 was also influenced by the sharp drop in rail passenger transport following the COVID-19 outbreak," the statistics agency said.

A total of 687 people were killed and 468 were seriously injured in these accidents in 2020 (excluding suicides), with both numbers generally falling since 2010.

Railway accident deaths, 2020
Railway accident deaths, 2020

As far as Latvia is concerned, 2020 saw six lives lost in accidents on Latvian railways, all in what were described as "unauthorized persons" being on railway territory and being hit by a train. The figure is a big improvement on 2019's death toll (13) and in fact is the lowest figure in the last decade which saw double-digit deaths by accident with the sole exception of 2015 (9 deaths).

In addition there were three fatalities classed as suicides in 2020 in Latvia. This is also an improvement on the previous year's ten suicides and matches the lowest figure of the last decade, recorded in 2013.

Railway suicides
Railway suicides

In 2020, 1,331 significant railway accidents were reported in the EU and 687 persons were killed in these accidents, while another 468 persons were seriously injured. With 2,204 reported cases in 2020, suicides greatly outnumber the victims accounted for by railway accidents. For the EU as a whole, the number of such suicides remained at between 2,200 and 2,800 per year in the period 2010-2020.

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