Within May will be filed for voting in Parliament new Road Traffic Code, announced the Vice President of the Government Kostis Hatzidakis In his speech at an event for his 20 years Panos Mylonas Road Safety Institute.
The Vice -President of the Government presented evidence according to which the situation in our country as to road safety has improved but the picture remains at worse levels than the EU. As he said:
“We have fewer conflicts, fewer dead, fewer injuries. In 1998, when the worst performance was recorded, 2,182 people had lost their lives. In 2023, they reached 627. We have taken steps, so, but they are not enough. Because compared to the European Union, the elements are not encouraging at all. Between 2019 and 2024 we had a 3% reduction in fatal traffic. When the corresponding decrease in the European Union was 13%. In 2024, however, we had an increase of 4% compared to 2023. That alone shows that no complacency can fit. “
Mr. Chatzidakis presented 5 axes for road safety including:
1. Modern infrastructure that protects
“The Patras -Pyrgos road axis will be completed within the year. Several pieces of E65 have already been delivered, and the northern part is expected to be delivered early next year. We build the Flyover in Thessaloniki. Last Friday, contracts for the north road in Crete were signed. These projects are not only a developmental dimension. They also have a positive reflection on enhancing drivers’ safety, “he said.
2. Sustainable and safe movement by public transport
According to the data provided, more than 400 new buses are already in Athens, and by the end of the year, they will exceed 950. At the same time, works for the metro line 4 have begun, the Thessaloniki metro was delivered after 18 years and at the beginning of next year the extension is delivered to Kalamaria. In addition, the subway was expanded until 2:30 in the morning on Friday and Saturday, with 24 -hour fixed track operation on weekends. “Strengthening public transport is not just a matter of traffic or environment. It is also a safe alternative to the movement of citizens, “Mr. Hatzidakis underlined.
3. The new road traffic code
It provides, among other things, a decrease in speed limit in cities from 50 to 30 km/h while ranking violations into 4 categories, depending on their risk: low, medium, high and high with particular impact on road safety.
For severe infringements – excessive speed, non -compliance with red traffic light, driving under the influence of alcohol – penalties become truly strict: fines of up to 1,500 euros, diploma for months, and even imprisonment.
At the same time, there is a escalation of sanctions for drivers who often fall into violations.
4. More checks, by utilizing modern technologies
In recent years, both the checks and the violations that are confirmed have multiplied. “Traffic cannot be ubiquitous. New technologies, however, can play a decisive role in this endeavor, “Mr Hatzidakis said. In this context, as he said: “By the summer, 388 cameras will be located on the streets of Attica. The goal is for the cameras to reach 2,000 and another 500 to be placed on buses on the move to control the buses. The installation of the extra cameras will begin at the end of the year. These cameras will control a series of violations, such as speed -limit, breach of a red traffic light, mobile use, non -use of helmet. Violations will be automatically and digitally confirmed and will engage in citizens through Gov.gr. “
5. Road Education
“We have to teach young children that a good driver is not the one who runs too much or makes dangerous overtakes. But the one who drives safely, the one who shows respect for both the rest of the drivers and the pedestrians, “the Deputy Prime Minister said.
He added that the Institute of Road Safety, with thousands of seminars, simulators, speeches, has entered school classrooms, camps, universities and that it is an obligation of the state to support its work. In this context, he announced that the Government is meeting a request by the Institute: