A new study from the Vias Institute reveals that “licensed cars”, or carts, present a risk of serious accident six times higher than that of traditional cars. Light weight and lack of safety equipment partly explain this alarming observation. Vias calls for better awareness and stronger legislation.
The road safety institute would like these cars to be more recognizable and its users better aware. Vias emphasizes that the term “car without a license” is not entirely correct, because the driver must hold a cyclo license (unless he was born before February 14, 1961). There are around 13,000 of them on Belgian roads. Their rarer presence leads to few accidents, between 60 and 80 per year on average, and yet often more serious, according to the study. Per kilometer traveled, the risk of being seriously injured is six times higher for car occupants.
The increase in the degree of severity is explained by the difference in weight, limited to 425 kg for these vehicles compared to an average of more than 1,400 kg for traditional ones, but also by the less frequent presence of safety equipment such as airbags or ABS. Vias points out that the head is, for example, very poorly protected in the event of a frontal collision.
Recommendations
The institute therefore makes several recommendations to public authorities in order to improve the safety of drivers of these vehicles. He advocates in particular for the obligation to affix a distinctive sign at the rear, as is the case in the Netherlands and Germany. He also wants the imposition of regular technical inspections, an obligation for basic safety equipment and awareness-raising for cart users.
The rate of non-wearing seat belts among car occupants involved in an accident is four times higher than for those in a traditional car. More than 10% of drivers “car without a license” also drove under the influence of alcohol, compared to 7.5% of car drivers.
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