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Residential Road Speed Limit to Be Reduced to 30 kph in 2026; Move Is Supported by Families of Traffic Accident Victims - The Japan News

Pedestrians at risk

The NPA's move to lower the legal speed limit for narrower roads is supported by the fact that pedestrians in Japan are more likely to be involved in fatal accidents than those in Western countries.

The NPA has compared data from the other G7 member countries regarding the proportion of pedestrians among people who died within 30 days of being involved in traffic accidents. Japan's figure stood at 37.1% in 2023, while the United States was 17.4% in 2021. The 2022 figures stood at 14.9% for France and 13.2% for Germany.

In European cities, it is the often case that sidewalks and driveways are clearly separated because urban roads were traditionally used by horse-drawn carriages. In Japan, by contrast, it is not common for roads to have separate spaces for pedestrians and vehicles, because roads were long used mostly by pedestrians before being taken over by cars in modern times.

https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/society/general-news/20240622-193746/?utm_source=piano&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=8464&pnespid=pfyPiJAE_.HEp6qsuw_j5eod.Q8dvyIphBJ0HhM66EKVxiwBplMM78m9bADA3lfJ_fGTxw

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Seetha Ram

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