“Unacceptable relaxation while Driving”: This Month of August is the Deadliest on the Roads in 14 Years

Road deaths increased sharply in August in mainland France compared to the same month last year, making it the “deadliest” month in 14 years.

According to estimates from the National Interministerial Road Safety Observatory (ONISR), 341 people died last month on the roads of France, compared to 290 in August 2024.

Road deaths increased sharply (+18%) in August in mainland France compared to the same month last year, Road Safety announced on Monday, making it the “deadliest” month in 14 years.

“This is the deadliest month of August on the roads in almost 15 years”, underlined Michèle Lugrand, interim interministerial delegate for Road Safety, calling for “collective recovery”. “This deterioration concerns all road networks, all ages and all modes of travel, with the exception of motorized two-wheelers”, she added.

In particular, the ONISR recorded, compared to 2024, 53 more motorists, eight pedestrians and two cyclists killed.

She recalled the risk factors: speeding, using the telephone while driving, recklessness, which “considerably increases(s) the occurrence of tragedies”. The number of seriously injured (1,601 people) remained stable over one year in mainland France.

“Very worrying”

On overseas roads, however, the number of injury accidents fell by 24%, with 303 injuries and 23 deaths, two fewer than the same period last year.

In July, road deaths had already increased by 23% compared to last year, with 338 people dying in mainland France.

3,193 deaths in 2024

This assessment was then considered “very worrying” by François-Noël Buffet, minister who resigned from the Minister of the Interior, who denounced “an unacceptable relaxation of driving behavior”.

Over the whole of 2024, 3,193 deaths were recorded on the roads of France, almost stable mortality compared to the previous year, with a slight drop in injuries, according to ONISR figures