In concrete figures, the number of accidents with victims on Algarve roads increased from 779, between January and May 2023, to 880, in the same five months of this year, an increase of 13%.

Even so, this year there were three fewer fatalities than in 2023, a decrease of 23.1%, from 13 to 10 deaths.

This trend is not seen in terms of injuries resulting from road accidents in the Algarve.

Serious injuries increased by 10%, from 80 to 88, while minor injuries increased from 850 to 944 (+11.1%).

At a national level, and in relation to mainland Portugal, "in the first five months of 2024, there were 14,045 accidents with victims, of which 179 fatalities, 954 serious injuries and 16,332 minor injuries were recorded".

Compared to the first five months of 2023, "there was a decrease of 9 fatalities (-4.8%) and of 8.3% in the severity index, which fell from 1.39 to 1.27".

"However, there were 514 more accidents (+3.8%), 56 more serious injuries (+6.2%), and 589 more minor injuries (+3.7%)", reads the report, which also highlights that, "compared to 2023, an increase in road traffic was observed in 2024, which corresponds to an increase in the risk of accidents".

"Collisions represented the most frequent type of accident in the first five months of 2024, corresponding to 52.8% of accidents, 41.3% of fatalities, and 45.2% of serious injuries. The accidents, which accounted for 33.0% of all accidents, were responsible for 44.1% of fatalities.

In the period under analysis, "the number of fatalities within urban areas (100) was higher than that recorded outside urban areas (79)."

Compared to 2023, there was an increase in fatalities within urban areas (+7.5%). However, "the trend was downward outside urban areas (-16.8% compared to 2023)."

This report also focuses on infractions.

"In the first five months of 2024, 96.3 million vehicles were inspected, either in person or through automatic inspection methods, an increase of 70.7% compared to 2023. The ANSR's National Speed ​​Control System (SINCRO) recorded an increase of 79.6%. On the contrary, the PSP recorded a decrease of 25.6% and the GNR of 19.6%", it reads.

"The infractions amounted to 366.2 thousand, which represents a decrease of 1.9% compared to the same period of the previous year".

Regarding the type of infractions, "70.9% of the total recorded in the first five months of 2024 was related to speeding, which registered an increase of 11.6%".

In the remaining types of infractions, there were decreases, with emphasis on "in addition to those related to seat belts and mobile phone use (-47.5% and -34.4%, respectively), those related to driving under the influence of alcohol (-25.9%)", the report also reveals.