Since reunification, traffic fatalities in Germany have been trending downward. Nevertheless,
German Crash Stats Show Need for Driver Assistance Systems
4,970 people in Germany died in traffic crashes in 2007. This is less than a quarter of the 1970 figure, and 2.4% fewer than in 2006, but it still equates to 14 traffic-related deaths every day in 2007. What is more, the total number of crashes is rising. In 2007, there were 2.3 million crashes, a rise of 2.6% over 2006. 431,500 people were injured in 2007 — 2.1% more than in 2006.
Of particular note is a shift in the vehicles involved: of the 4,188 fatalities in 2007 from January to October, 2,191 were traveling by car, 888 by motorbike, 499 on foot, and 380 on bicycles. Crashes on motorways decreased by 6.4%, compared to only 3.1% for crashes on surface streets.
The Institute for Traffic Safety in Braunschweig is pinning its hopes on Driver Assistance Systems as the next significant tool to reduce traffic crash frequency and severity; the driver is human, and as such remains the weakest link in the traffic-safety chain.