There was one traffic fatality in the third quarter this year.

In the third quarter the number of reported traffic accidents totalled 3,802, an increase of 247, or 6.9 per cent, over the corresponding period last year. Increases were registered in all districts except in the Northern district. 

In the period under review 517 traffic casualties were reported, of which 309 involved drivers. There were 271 drivers who sustained slight injuries and 38 who reported grievous injuries. During this period, 35 persons (19 passengers and 16 pedestrians) suffered grievous injuries, while 172 (120 passengers and 52 pedestrians) were slightly injured (Tables 4-6).  Moreover, the injury sustained by one pedestrian proved to be fatal.

On a gender basis, slightly-injured persons in the third quarter numbered 443 of which 250 males and 193 females. Grievously-injured persons totalled 73, the majority being males. The largest number of casualties (153) was in the 25-39 age group.

Table 8 shows that 74.3 per cent of traffic casualties were caused by passenger cars, followed by motorcycles at 16.2 per cent, while 6.2 per cent were caused by goods-carrying vehicles.

In the third quarter, the highest traffic casualty rate occurred on Saturdays, accounting for 16.1 per cent of total casualties. The highest number of accidents was recorded on Tuesdays, totalling 641 cases, and the lowest was recorded on Sundays, with 367 cases. Sundays topped the highest casualty-to-accidents ratio. 

Table 10 shows that the daily time bracket in which most accidents occur is between 15:00 - 17:59, with 842 cases, or 22.1 per cent of the total. The least number of accidents occurring daily took place between 03:00 and 05:59 (114 cases); notably more than half were recorded on Saturdays and Sundays.

In the period under review, Birkirkara registered the highest rate of traffic accidents, with 219 cases. Ħal Qormi and St. Paul's Bay were next, with 192 and 188 reported accidents respectively.