In March 2022, 231 fatalities occurred on the roads of mainland France and 26 overseas.
| Warning: the health crisis linked to Covid-19 has led the government to take exceptional measures to restrict trips and activities. Since March 2020, the evolution of road accidents reflects the hazards of the measures and the way French people have adapted their mobility according to the periods. In March 2022, teleworking is strongly recommended in metropolitan France and there are no travel restrictions. Road accident indicators have shown very atypical trends since March 2020, so comparisons are also made with the year 2019 and even with previous years. Specific insights are provided during the quarterly dashboards since the June 2020 dashboard. |
Mainland
231 people were killed on the roads in mainland France in March 2022, compared with 188 in March 2021, i.e. 43 more people killed. This result is down compared to March 2019 (24 fewer people killed, i.e. -9%) as well as compared to the average for March 2015-2019 (-6%).
The number of injury accidents recorded by law enforcement was 4,352 in March 2022, higher than last year's result (3,878 accidents, or 474 more injury accidents than in March 2021) but lower than the March 2019 result (4,455 accidents, or 103 fewer injury accidents and a -2% decrease).
5,322 people were injured in March 2022, a result +12% higher than March 2021 and -3% lower than March 2019: there were 4,760 injured in March 2021 and 5,500 injured in March 2019.
Travel during March 2022 was higher than in March 2021 (by an average of +10% compared to March 2021, according to the Cerema traffic dataviz).
Thus the results concerning road accidents reflect the recovery of French mobility compared to 2021, with a lower accident rate than in March before the pandemic.
Data source : ONISR - Data on injury accidents recorded by police forces - Geographical area : France mainland
Labelled series (final until 2020, near final 2021), 2022 estimate based on data as of 08/04/2022
2022 road fatalities by transport mode, age, and road network
In March 2022, no measures restricting the mobility of French people were in place in metropolitan France, while on 18 March 2021 a third lockdown was introduced in some french counties. Fatalities in March 2022 is thus much higher than that recorded in March 2021, but lower than the average of the last 5 years before the pandemic.
Pedestrian fatalities in March 2022 are higher than those in March 2021 and similar to those in March 2019. Thus, 33 pedestrians were killed in March 2022, 12 more than in March 2021 and 1 fewer than in March 2019.
Cyclist fatalities for March 2022, with 18 cyclists killed, were higher than those recorded in March 2021 and in March 2019. This fatality is higher than the March months of the last 10 years.
Motorcyclist fatalities, with 48 killed, are higher than March 2021 and lower to pre-pandemic levels.
Car user fatalities are higher than in March 2021 and lower than in March 2019: 111 car users were killed in March 2022 compared to 94 in March 2021 (17 more killed) and 126 in March 2019 (15 fewer killed). Motor vehicle fatalities in March 2022 is lower than the average for March in the 5 pre-pandemic years.
11 children or teens were killed on the roadways in March 2022, which is lower than March 2021 and similar to March 2019.
37 young people aged 18-24 were killed on the roads in March 2022, 7 more than in March 2021 and 13 fewer than in March 2019; this remains is lower than the average for March in the 5 pre-pandemic years.
50 senior citizens aged 65 or more died on the roads in March 2022, higher than in March 2021 (5 more fatalities) and lower than the average for March in the 5 pre-pandemic years.
In urban areas, fatalities are similares to those in March 2021, with 1 more fatalities, and lower than in March 2019.
In rural areas, fatalities are much higher than in March 2021, with 43 more fatalities, and slightly lower than in March 2019.
ns: non-significant change
Data source : ONISR - Data on injury accidents recorded by police forces - Geographical area : France mainland
Labelled series (final until 2020, near final 2021), 2022 estimate based on data as of 08/04/2022
Development of the number of users fatalities cumulated on a rolling 12 months
The health crisis has deeply affected trips since March 2020, for all users, but to varying degrees depending on the alternation of restrictions and authorized movements. Even if the pandemic is still active, trips and accident rates are returning to near pre-pandemic levels, sometimes with changes linked to new habits.
Car users usually account for half of the road deaths. Their fatalities over the last 12 months is estimated at 1,514 fatalities compared to 1,622 for the entire year of 2019, which represent a decrease of -7% over just over two years.
Pedestrian fatalities also fell sharply over this period: an estimated 462 pedestrians were killed in the last 12 months, compared with 483 for the entire year of 2019, which means a drop of -4%.
The fatalities of powered two-wheeler over the past 12 months are still lower than in 2019, but the decline is less important than the one observed in 2020. Motorcyclist fatalities are reduced by -7% with 571 fatalities in the last 12 months compared to 615 fatalities in 2019. The sharp decline in moped rider fatalities has continued over these last 12 months, -29% compared to 2019 with 95 moped rider fatalities these last 12 months compared to 134 in 2019; a decline that affects all age groups.
Fatalities among young adults aged 18-24, at high risk of serious road accidents, have decreased by -4% in the last 12 months compared to 2019 (525 people killed compared to 549 in 2019).
Compared to other trends, cyclist fatalities over the last 12 months are higher than in 2019: 234 cyclists were killed in the last 12 months, +25% compared to 2019. Indeed, the French show a preference for using individual means of transport for short trips in towns, but also practice leisure cycling in rural areas.
Finally, the number of fatalities among heavy goods vehicle users rose sharply in late 2021 and early 2022. It is up by +53% compared to 2019 but remains similar to the average of the years 2015-2019.
Data source : ONISR - Data on injury accidents recorded by police forces - Geographical area : France mainland
Labelled series (final until 2020, near-final 2021), 2022 estimate based on data as of 08/04/2022
Evolution of people injured over the last 12 months according to their transport mode
In urban areas, the evolution of PMDs motorized injured is on an upward slope compared to 2019, as this mode of travel has grown. In the last 12 months, compared to 2019, the number of injured cyclists has increased by 16%, while the number of injured pedestrians and motorcyclists has decreased by -13% and -16%.
In rural areas, the biggest increase in injured over the last 12 months compared to 2019 is for cyclists, with +18%. The trend in motorised twowheelers injured is slightly up compared to 2019.
ns: non-significant change
Data source : ONISR - Data on injury accidents recorded by police forces - Geographical area : France mainland
Labelled series (final data until 2020, near final 2021), 2022 provisional data as of 08/04/2022
Overseas
In March 2022, the mortality road indicators for french overseas are higher than in March 2021 and March 2019, other indicators for March 2022 are lower than in March 2019:
- 244 injury accidents compared to 234 injury accidents ;
- 296 injured compared 300 injured ;
- 26 fatalities compared to 22 fatalities.
ns: non-significant change
Data source : ONISR - Data on injury accidents recorded by the police forces - Geographic scope: DOM + COM + New Caledonia
Final data until 2020, near final data 2021, provisional data 2022 stopped on 08/04/2022