City council wants to stall rise in moped accidents

Six out of every ten moped riders involved in a total of 1'330 traffic accidents involving scooters in Palma last year were aged between 16 and 20, according to statistics released by the Local Police yesterday. The figures also indicate that the vast majority of traffic accidents in the city involved people aged between 16 and 20, and this has forced the Local Police to take some form of action to encourage young moped riders to take more care on the roads. The total number of traffic accidents in Palma last year was 6'469, with just over 4'000 involving cars. But of the 1'330 moped accidents, 876 people were injured, again six out of every ten moped riders involved in an accident. Of the 4'011 cars crashed, only 383 people were injured. The deputy Mayor of Palma, José Manuel Sierra, said yesterday that immediate and effective action has to be taken in order to start reducing the number of accidents involving youngsters. “Young moped riders have to be made to understand the great risk they are running by behaving badly on the roads and that on many occasions, the injuries suffered are extremely serious,” Sierra said. The city council intends to expand its traffic education programme as well as launching a crackdown on poorly maintained scooters and riders either not wearing crash helmets or having them just balanced on their heads.