The streets of Edmonton are often a pleasure to drive in, with little, smooth slowing traffic, high quality infrastructure, and well behaved rule abiding drivers. While Edmonton’s streets are far from dangerous, they do witness a number of accidents each year, which are sizable for a relatively smaller population.
Things get a bit more dangerous during the course of winters, during periods of snowfall and ice on the roads, and as such require a few precautions among drivers and pedestrians alike. In this article, we delve deep into the stats and figures to uncover the reality of road accidents in Edmonton, and the steps that can be taken to prevent the same.
Injured In An Edmonton Accident? Hire An Expert Local Legal Team
While the city of Edmonton is known for its safety and optimum driving conditions, there are times when accidents are simply inevitable.
If you’ve met with such an accident, and are injured, either in your vehicle, or as a pedestrian, make sure to call the cops, before documenting and taking necessary photographs. Once that’s done, you can reach out to MNH Injury Lawyers, a leading legal team in Edmonton with years of experience dealing with accidents and personal injuries.
Fatalities & Serious Injuries Continue To Drop
Fatalities and serious injuries resulting from road accidents have been on a decline since 2015, by as much as 56%.
In 2019, total traffic fatalities stood at 14 and 268 serious injuries, a sharp drop from 31 fatalities and 467 serious injuries reported in 2015.
This can be attributed to a series of awareness campaigns, and citywide infrastructure improvements that helped minimize instances of distracted driving and overspeeding.
Infrastructure Investments Yield Results
When it comes to curbing road accidents, the city has focused on improving infrastructure based on extensive data analysis.
During the past year alone, the city upgraded 87 locations with better markers, highlights, and street lighting, aimed at improving visibility during snowy conditions.
This includes $4 million on improving crosswalks, and a further $1.1 million earmarked for traffic signaling improvements, all of which are seemingly yielding results.
Snowfalls Increase Collisions & Increase Congestion
A vast majority of collisions in the city are witnessed during winter, when vehicles fail to receive traction on the icy roads and hit one another.
While these are rarely deadly, or involve any serious injuries, they result in substantial congestion, taking anywhere between 15 to 20 minutes to take photographs and complete other essential formalities.
The city of Edmonton is constantly working to address this issue, and it involves an extensive snow and ice removal plan, which involves authorities working round the clock, along with the application of traction materials at intersections, bridges, and elevated roads.
Pedestrian, Motorcycle & Bicycle Collisions Are A Bigger Threat
While the city has made great strides when it comes to reducing the overall injuries and fatalities resulting from road accidents, the statistics involving pedestrians, bicycles, and motorcycles remain largely unmoved.
This is mainly owing to the city’s lack of extensive bike lanes, forcing bikes and pedestrians to share a footpath in most locations.
Here again, collisions and accidents are rarely fatal, or lead to serious injuries, but it is the unpleasantness and discomfort of having to constantly watch your back that makes this one of the city’s top priorities in the years ahead.
Final Words
As mentioned earlier, Edmonton is far from dangerous, and if anything, it is one of the safest cities globally when it comes to road accidents.
Despite this, the city makes persistent efforts to reduce accidents, along with the injuries and fatalities resulting from the same, and has seen great results from its efforts thus far.