Number of deaths in cycling accidents soars

The number of cyclist deaths in cycling accidents came to 91 last year, rising by 30 percent from a year prior, Ministry of the Interior and Safety data showed Sunday.

The number of deaths from such accidents in 2021 amounted to 70.

With the increase, the proportion of overall traffic accident deaths accounted for by such cases rose to 3.3 percent, up from 2021's 2.4 percent.

Of the 91 cyclist deaths, 40 were from solo accidents while 49 were in collisions between cyclists. Two cyclists died in accidents involving a pedestrian.

As for all cycling accidents, 3,811 reported cases were collisions between cyclists, accounting for 70.7 percent of the total.

The main cause of the bicycle accidents was determined to be failure of compliance and the obligation to ride safely, with 3,570 cases, or about 66.2 percent of all cycling accidents.

By age group, those 65 years old and over were involved in the largest proportion of cycling accidents, as well as deaths in such incidents. According to the ministry's data, 25.5 percent of cycling accidents involved those in the age group, while more than half of deaths resulting from such incidents were 65 or older.