MONTREAL -- Fewer people died on Quebec roads in 2019, according to the Sûreté du Québec (SQ).
In its annual road and safety report, the provincial police force states that the number of deadly collisions in Quebec went from 237 in 2018 to 216 in 2019 – despite the fact that there are now more vehicles on the roads than ever before.
In addition, the number of people who died went from 252 in 2018 to 232 in 2019 – a big difference compared to the 340 people who died on the roads in 2010.
“Although fatal and serious crashes are on the decline, the behaviour of road users continues to be a concern,” the force notes.
Excessive speed
The SQ says speeding is still at the top of the list of most frequent causes of deadly crashes.
“Although the number of fatal speed-related or dangerous driving collisions has decreased from 71 in 2018 to 64 in 2019, this reckless behaviour still dominates the list of causes of fatal collisions,” it argues.
Speeding is considered to be one of the most probable causes of deadly crashes in almost 30 per cent of cases last year.
Drinking and driving
In 2019, impaired driving, whether it be alcohol, drugs or a combination of both, rose to the second most likely cause of fatal crashes, accounting for more than 10 per cent of collisions.
On average, the SQ says it arrests 17 people a day for driving under the influence.
Distracted driving
The SQ notes that distracted driving was the likely cause of 17 fatal collisions, or nearly eight per cent of deadly crashes in 2019.
Not wearing a seat belt
Last year, 25 people lost their lives, potentially because they were not wearing their seat belts, compared to 45 people in 2018.
