We are happy to report that Slovenia achieved impressive results in road safety in 2017, with a drop in fatalities by -20%. That is the second highest drop among the European Union countries in the past year, only behind Estonia which achieved the 32% drop. Slovenia now ranks very close to the EU average with 50 deaths per million inhabitants and aims to cut road mortality to 35 deaths per million inhabitants by 2022, according to the government’s road safety programme for the period 2013-2022.

The Crni Kal viaduct is the longest motorway bridge as well as the tallest structure in Slovenia, located on the A1 motorway, about 20 kilometres east of Koper and 80 kilometres southwest of Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana. (Image by Piotr Skrzypiec)

In 2017, the EU countries with the best road safety scores were Sweden (25) and the United Kingdom (27), followed by the Netherlands (31), Denmark (32), Ireland (33) and Estonia (36). On the other hand, the EU countries with the highest fatality rate were Romania (98) and Bulgaria (96). While the European Union average decrease in the number of road deaths from 2016 to 2017 was only 2%, some countries made much more progress, such as Estonia with -32% and Slovenia with -20%.

European roads remain the safest in the world: in 2017, the European Union countries counted 49 road fatalities per one million inhabitants, against 174 deaths per million globally.

More statistics here: 2017 road safety statistics!

All images below provided by Slovenia.info!

The Puh Bridge over the Drava River in the town of Ptuj is 430 metres long and 18 meters wide and was opened for traffic in May 2007. (Image by Jost Gantar)

An elevated view of a road bridge across the Soca river with the town of Nova Gorica in the background. (Image by Alex Stokelj, Invida d.o.o.)

The well-maintained, winding countryside roads are fun to drive. (Image by Boris Pretnar)

A group of motorcyclists on the road through the Logarska Valley in the Solcava area. (Image by Ales Fevzer)

At an elevation of 1,611 metres, Vrsic is the highest mountain pass in Slovenia and connects the Gorenjska region with the Trenta valley. (Image by Boris Pretnar)

The Mangart Road that leads over the Mangart saddle, with its elevation of 2,055 meters, has a number of turns and is the highest-lying road in Slovenia. (Image by Jost Gantar)

Cyclists are the most vulnerable people on the road and efforts are needed towards a zero accident concept. (Image by Jost Gantar)

Most roads in Slovenia are well maintained and of a high standard. (Image by Julia Wesely)