Follow-up report: why road deaths doubled on the Costa del Sol this summer

To analyse the causes of this worrying increase, SUR turned to Mario Arnaldo, president of the AEA (Automovilistas Europeos Asociados), expert in the road safety sector.

The traffic report highlights the rise in pedestrian accidents, with several cases making the news in the Costa del Sol. Arnaldo said that the official figures remain "incomplete", as they refer only to inter-urban roads, without a focus on urban roads.

According to Arnaldo, in many Malaga municipalities "inter-urban roads have become urban", which means that a heavy-traffic road has converted into a street, making it "difficult to cross from one side to the other".

"We need to find a solution, to enable pedestrians to cross from one side to the other more easily," he said.

Arnaldo highlighted that the accident rate has seen a "significant and concerning" increase this summer, felt most acutely in Malaga province, particularly in August.

In spite of this, the year-to-date figure shows a slight decrease. "We haven't managed to reverse the trend. The poor condition of the roads is a cause for concern, particularly on the secondary road network (on single-carriageway roads) where many head-on collisions occur while overtaking."

Vehicle occupancy naturally increases in summer. With more people in the car, this further contributes to the number of deaths in a single "serious accident". "It is not the same as a driver travelling alone during working hours," Arnaldo stated.

Provincial head of the DGT Aída Vilaret confirmed the "poor results" of this summer's report. "There has been an increase in the number of accidents, fatalities and injuries," she stated.

Traffic volumes are rising, but at a slower rate. Distraction remains the main cause of accidents, but Vilaret believes that most accidents are the result of "reckless behaviour with fatal consequences".

"These figures should give us pause for thought, as they represent a significant number of preventable deaths. I urge everyone to exercise caution, be vigilant and comply with the rules so that the accident rate does not continue rising and the scourge of road traffic accidents is brought to an end," Vilaret said.

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