Abstract:

The objective of this article is to examine the trends of traffic crashes, deaths and injuries in Turkey from 1980 to 2016. A time-series methodology were used to analyze crash trends per 1000 people, 1000 driver, 1000 vehicle and a million vehicle-kilometer traveled (VKT). Furthermore, the association between economic development of Turkey and traffic crashes were explored. The effectiveness of highway investments and traffic enforcement on traffic crashes, deaths and injuries were also discussed. Results shows that even though a dramatic increase is has observed in income, vehicle ownership and VKT in Turkey, road traffic deaths has decreased by 17% in the last 26 years. However, crashes and injuries has continued to increase, and death rates are still higher than rates in the European Union (EU) countries.

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