According to the data released by Israel Police, road deaths increased sharply as have fatal crashes, with the latter up by 35% in 2015. The death toll in 2015 increased 10.6% as compared to 2014. It was the highest number killed on the nation’s roads since 1992.

In fact, R”L 357 people were killed on the nation’s roadways in 2015 as opposed to 319 in the previous year. For comparison’s sake, in 2013 there were 309 road fatalities and in 2012 that number was 290 and in 2001 that number stood at 382.

The report also documents the number of fatalities involving two-wheeled vehicles, which includes motorcycles and scooters, as well as electric and mechanical bicycles. There were 71 deaths in accidents involving these vehicles in 2015, which includes 15 on electric and mechanical bicycles. In all of 2014 there were 10 deaths in this category.

Among the fatalities 223 were on highways and 134 on city roads. In 2014, of the 319 fatalities, 188 were on highways and 131 in cities.

In his capacity as Chairman of the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee, MK (Machane Tzioni) Eitan Cabel explained to the media he is determined to use all the resources available to him as a parliamentarian to fight the alarming increase in the number of road deaths in Israel. Cabel told Kol Chai Radio on Tuesday, 30 Shevat that he is not an expert, but plans to become one, working with anyone and everyone remotely related to the matter for he is unwilling to accept this data without viewing it as an urgent call for action. He has scheduled a number of committee sessions devoted to this, during which lawmakers hope to hear from the experts, adding he will devote as many sessions as it takes but the problem must be addressed and the reality changed.

Ionically the increase in fatalities comes at a time the state is investing heavily in improving the infrastructure, which was blamed for many road deaths and injuries in the past. The Ministry of Transportation in recent years has invested enormous sums. Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz reports that in each of the three past years, the ministry has spent NIS 5 billion on municipal infrastructure and an additional NIS 5 billion on public transport.

An unprecedented sum was also invested in the past three years in traffic enforcement against speeders. Since 2012, the Ministry of Public Security and Israel Police have spent NIS tens of millions on speed cameras, primarily on highways. Despite all the efforts, the number of road fatalities in 2015 due to veering from a lane rose an alarming 18%.

Cabel is not alone in his probe to determine what the contributory factors are. He told the press he is unwilling to just blame smartphones, but quickly stated texting and diverting attention to the phones, WhatsApp and the constant need to remain in the loop is definitely one of the contributory factors and it cannot be ignored.

According to multi-year data recently published by the National Road Safety Authority, the main causes of road accidents are failure to yield the right of way to pedestrians, failure to comply with a road sign or traffic signals, speeding, tailgating and veering from one’s lane. Please note these offenses has long been considered the major causes of road accidents with casualties and the data does not offer an explanation, as to why one veers from one’s lane for example. This is what Cabel insists he hopes to find out.

However, there are factors that do not appear in any official report or statement from the National Road Safety Authority or Israel Police, but nevertheless are regarded as significant factors. For example, safety experts believe distraction due to phones is a major factor. The experts state however that it is difficult to assess the impact of distraction on road accidents because of it is known these accidents are under-reported so the data is lacking. It is added that it is not always possible to determine if a driver was distracted by his phone prior to a fatal crash but the smartphones and their apps are viewed as a major factor in drivers veering out of a lane as they clearly are distracted for a number of seconds, and at times, this leads to a crash.

Minister Katz feels that in addition to continue investing in the areas mentioned, his office is planning what he calls the “tie-breaking factor”, ordering the installation of an advanced warning system in all vehicles on the road manufactured after 2000. He envisions systems that will detect three issues, veering from one’s lane, getting dangerously close to the vehicle in front and warning of pedestrians in the road. These systems already exist today and motorists who opt to pay to have them installed benefit by receiving a significant reduction in insurance premiums.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)