More than 600 people died in road accidents in Portugal in 2023

A total of 20,380 people died in road accidents in the European Union (EU) in 2023, a decrease of 1.3% compared to the previous year, with 642 of these fatalities being recorded in Portugal, Eurostat reported today.
Data released today by the EU’s statistical office, Eurostat, indicates that in 2023 (the most recent year with available data), road accidents caused 20,380 deaths in the EU, a decrease of 1.3% compared to 2022, when there were 20,652 fatalities.
In 2020, the number of fatalities drastically decreased to 18,830, which Eurostat attributed to the mobility restrictions imposed by the covid-19 pandemic, which affected passenger transport.
“Although the number of fatalities increased in 2021 and 2022, it did not return to pre-pandemic levels,” adds the community statistical service.
In total, in Portugal, 642 people died in road accidents in 2023, more than the 618 deaths recorded in 2022.
In the same year, Portugal recorded an average of 61 road accident deaths per million inhabitants, higher than the EU average of 46.
Across the community space, the lowest road death rates in 2023 were recorded in Sweden (22 road deaths per million inhabitants), Denmark (27), and Malta (30).
In contrast, the highest rates were recorded in Bulgaria and Romania (both with 81 road deaths per million inhabitants), followed by Latvia (75).