NICOSIA – Cyprus ranked second in the EU in terms of the number of young people who lost their lives in traffic accidents per capita, the Cyprus news Agency reported on Monday.
It said the figures had emerged from a Paneuropean Youth Forum on Road safety held in Italy from November 27 to 30.
According to the non-profit organisation REACTION Youth for Prevention which took part in the meeting, young people in the EU 28 are looking to improve road safety.
They note that although the 18-25 age group makes up only 20% of the EU population, it accounts for 30% of road fatalities. In 2010 more than 9150 young people lost their lives on the road. For the 10 year period 2001 – 2010 the young people killed in road accidents exceeds 140,000.
The chairman of REACTION, Marios Stavrou said that although a lot was being done for road safety among the young, there was room for improvement.