Israeli drivers ‘most concerned’ in Europe about road safety
Yet major survey of European motorists also finds locals claiming to be among the study area's 'least risky' behind the wheel
Israeli drivers are more concerned about road safety than any other drivers in Europe, a major new study found, and they rank that worry above concerns over crime, pollution, unemployment and health care.
Yet on the basis of the Israeli drivers’ answers in the survey, they have the second safest driving style in Europe, bettered only by Irish drivers. Relatively large numbers of Israeli respondents insisted that they do not drive through yellow lights, do not drive too close to the car in front, and do not use their mobile phones while driving. By their own admission when answering those questions, Cypriot and Greek drivers have the most risky driving styles, the survey indicated.
The major study was carried out by the European Union-funded SARTRE project. SARTRE is an acronym for Social Attitudes to Road Traffic Risk in Europe, a series of studies dating back to 1991. In Israel, the pollsters questioned 855 people in face-to-face interviews conducted in Hebrew, Arabic and Russian, in December 2010 and January 2011. The 500-page, 19-country study was released a few weeks ago.
More than 75% of Israeli respondents pronounced themselves “very concerned” about road safety — the highest proportion in the study. At the same time, Israeli came lowest in the survey when comparing the number of drivers who said that they drove through yellow traffic lights. It ranked second from bottom (after Ireland) when drivers were asked whether they drove too close to the car in front. And it ranked third from bottom (after Hungary and the Netherlands) when drivers were asked if they made mobile-phone calls while driving.
The survey also found 85% of Israeli respondents saying they had not received a ticket and did not know anyone who had for dangerous driving. While almost 80% said they had not been breathalyzed in the previous three years, 45% acknowledged that they had driven after drinking.
The survey findings come after a rash of road fatalities over the recent Passover festival, defying an assertion three months ago that Israel was now one of the 10 safest countries worldwide to drive in.
The number of people killed in road accidents in Israel in 2012 was the lowest annual figure in 50 years, despite the huge increase in the number of cars in the country, Transportation and Road Safety Minister Yisrael Katz had announced at the end of December.