CyprusDriving

Police booked 21,000 people for speeding in the last two months, traffic police data published on Friday showed.

The data, covering the period between March 24 and May 24, showed that speed was the main traffic violation during that period nationwide, followed by traffic signal violations with 3,300 fines.

Another 1,320 people were booked for driving while holding a mobile phone or another object, and 1,100 fines were issued for those who failed to wear a seatbelt or a safety helmet.

Traffic officers also booked 770 vehicles for illegal parking, 93 drivers for parking in a disabled parking spot and 212 drivers for running a red light.

The data showed that 70 per cent of the people tested for drugs showed a positive result, with 280 positive narcotests after 402 checks.

Eighteen people refused to give a sample. In that case, people are charged in writing and are referred to the court, police said.

Source: Speeding most common traffic violation | Cyprus Mail

Road accidents fell 20 per cent between 2010 and 2020 in Cyprus, data released by the statistical service (Cystat) said on Wednesday.

According to an infographic on road transport and road accidents published in Cystat’s website the number of people killed on the roads fell by 20 per cent, from 60 in 2010 to 48 in 2020.

Even though two-wheelers constitute only 5.3 per cent of all licensed vehicles, they accounted for 31.3 per cent the fatalities in 2020.

At the same time, people over 60 years of age made up 45.8 per cent of those killed in 2020.

According to Cystat the registrations of motor vehicles during the period 2010-2020 ranged between 18,567 in 2013 and 49,450 in 2018.

The share of new vehicles in total registrations shows a downward trend. New vehicles constituted 38.03 per cent of total registrations in 2020 compared to 50.86 per cent in 2010.

In 2010 registrations of hybrid vehicles constituted only 0.43 per cent of total registrations whereas in 2020 this share reached 5.96 per cent.

The proportion of registrations of gasoline vehicles has dropped, while the proportion of diesel vehicles has increased.

In particular, in 2020 registrations of gasoline vehicles constituted 48.52 per cent of the total and of diesel vehicles 44.84 per cent, compared to 68.90 per cent and 30.64 per cent respectively in 2010.

The most common colour of motor vehicles registered in 2020 was white (35.24 per cent).

The number of licensed vehicles in 2020 was 759,268, of which 578,158 were passenger saloon cars.

Also, the average age of licensed passenger cars in 2020 was 13.2 years.

Source: Road deaths fell 20% between 2010 and 2020 | Cyprus Mail

Cyprus saw over 10,000 road accidents in 12 years with 729 fatalities

The majority of fatal traffic accidents’ victims in Cyprus are men, while most of those killed failed to wear a seatbelt or a helmet, data from the justice ministry has revealed.

Cyprus saw 729 deaths from traffic accidents in the last 12 years, with 571 or 78 per cent being men, the advisor of the minister of justice for road safety Iasonas Senekis told the Cyprus News Agency this week.

Police recorded 10,542 collisions that resulted in 15,173 injuries in that period.

Of those, 5,950 people were seriously injured and 9,223 were slightly injured. Another 5,687 traffic accidents were recorded without any injuries.

The biggest number of fatalities was recorded in 2008 with 82 victims, while 2013 saw the fewest number of deaths with 43 dying on the road.

“The more one analyses the statistics, one understands that the road does not discriminate. The numbers reveal some truths but only half the picture, because next to each number there is a name,” Sekkeris said.

More than half of the road deaths were recorded in Nicosia and Limassol which counted 221 and 212 deaths respectively.

Car drivers and passengers accounted for 323 of the deaths, with 60 per cent not wearing a seatbelt. Another 224 concerned drivers and passengers on motorcycles with 54 per cent failing to wear a helmet, the official added. The total deaths included 17 children aged under 15.

Concerning the factors that cause overall road accidents, the primary culprit is alcohol with 26 per cent of all accidents. Reckless and careless driving was the main factor in 22 per cent, and speed 12 per cent. But speed was the main factor in one third of the fatal accidents.

“The severity of the collision and consequently the injuries are greatly affected by the speed of the vehicles involved,” Sekkeris said.

Sekkeris cited a study on this by the European transport safety council (ETSC) and the organisation for economic cooperation and development (OECD), as well as the executive seminar for speed and speed management last December.

He added that a Metropolitan police study in London in 2019 showed that speed contributed to 50 per cent of the fatal traffic accidents.

Source: Speed and no seatbelts major factors in sobering road accident stats | Cyprus Mail

The Road Safety Council is considering which busy city streets will have their speed limit reduced from the current 50km/h to 30km/h.

Such a policy shift would be just one of the many sweeping reforms over the last year, from drastically overhauling traffic penalties to eventually reinstalling traffic cameras, in a bid to address Cyprus’ high rate of traffic fatalities.

As it stands, the 30km/h limit only applies near schools, some busy traffic junctions, a couple of streets in Nicosia and parts of the Limassol old town.

“This policy has many benefits, clearly making the roads safer – which will encourage more people to cycle in the cities and make it more likely children can play freely in their neighbourhoods,” Jason Senekkis, road safety advisor to the justice ministry, told the Cyprus Mail on Thursday.

He explained that the 30km/h limit will be introduced gradually, with a few streets to be identified throughout 2021.

The latest traffic committee meeting – attended by municipalities, police officers and ministries – supported the proposal to extend the areas covered by a 30km/h speed limit, with the Road Safety Council to decide which roads the change will apply to.

The plan is based on the Stockholm Declaration, which in March 2020 argued that streets with ‘mixed traffic’ – pedestrians, cars, cyclists, e-scooters and such – are better off with a 30km/h speed limit.

“Brussels has actually introduced the 30km/h speed limit across the city, with only some streets being exempt from this, in Cyprus we’re doing it the opposite way,” he said.

“Currently, [in Cyprus] most city streets are about 50km/h and some will become 30km/h.”

Senekkis also cited reduced pollution as another major benefit to the proposal, both in terms of noise and air quality.

The policy shift would certainly change the pace of city life, but perhaps also the face of it.

There are concerns as to how the speed limit would be enforced, as Senekkis says police should be the last resort.

A variety of methods could be used, he said, such as installing more street furniture, additional parking spaces to help narrow the streets, speed bumps – but this should not be overused, he adds – and even converting others into one-way roads.

Last year, the road transport department carried out a study which found that 70 per cent of road deaths in Cyprus occur within built-up areas. This far exceeds the EU average of 35 per cent.

Source: Speed limit being reduced to 30km/h on some city streets | Cyprus Mail

The road transport department announced on Tuesday the rules concerning the importation of vehicles from the UK following its EU exit.

According to the department, an M1 category vehicle – passenger car with up to eight seats not including the driver – can be registered in Cyprus provided it is up to five-years-old on the date of arrival, counting from the date it had been registered new in any country.

This does not apply to M1 vehicles already transported or imported to Cyprus from the UK, but not yet registered, or will be loaded for shipping to the Republic by Monday, February 15.

These vehicles can be registered whenever, even if its age exceeds five years.

The department said to register, an M1 vehicle must be accompanied by the original registration certificate (V5c) from the UK, a valid Cypriot MOT, an EU Whole Vehicle Type-Approval (Wvta) or Single Vehicle Approval (SVA) in Cyprus.

A UK registration certificate issued by the end of last year constitutes adequate proof that the vehicle has Wvta, provided it bears the Wvta indication. The indication on the V5c is found at point K – Type of approval number – and is in the form of e.g e4*2007/46*0186*11.

If there is no such indication, to register the vehicle, it must receive the SVA in Cyprus.

Vehicles in the M2 and M3 categories (buses) and N1, N2, and N3 cargo transporters (vans, twin cabs, trucks) are registered irrespective of age, provided they have certification proving their emissions comply with EU standards on the date the vehicle was registered in any country for the first time and they are equipped with ABS.

The UK registration certificate issued by the end of the year is again considered adequate proof as concerns emissions provided the engine is the one stated in the document. If it is a different engine, the department wants a certificate that its emissions comply with the respective EU standards.

Category L vehicles – mopeds, motorcycles, tricycles, and quad bikes – will be registered irrespective of age, provided they are accompanied by the European certificate of conformity in force on the date of its first registration. The department also accepts a copy of the certificate issued by the manufacturer or their representative.

The department also accepts the UK registration certificate issued by the end of the year, which is considered adequate proof that the vehicle has Wvta, provided the document bears the approval of the type of vehicle.

Source: Rules issued for car imports from UK post-Brexit | Cyprus Mail

The transport ministry has set fixed fares for taxis travelling to and from the airports, starting on March 1.

The fares include urban and rural taxi services.

In a written statement on Friday, Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos called on taxi drivers to implement the newly set fares “as one of the steps taken to improve the taxi transport sector in Cyprus”.

The decision aimed to solve a longstanding problem mainly concerning the appropriate information of visitors, tourists and others who use the service.

“The establishment of fixed fares is expected to give credibility to taxi transport thus improving professionalism and increase passenger traffic,” the ministry said.

According to the ministry no driver is allowed to charge lower or higher than those rates.

		Taxis carrying up to 4 passengers	Taxis carrying 5 – 6     passengers
From	To	Day Price	Night Price	Day Price	Night Price
(06.00 – 20.30)	(20.30 – 06.00)	(06.00 – 20.30)	(20.30 – 06.00)
Larnaca Airport	Nicosia	€ 45	€ 50	€ 60	€ 65
Limassol	€ 50	€ 60	€ 65	€ 80
Larnaca	€ 15	€ 20	€ 20	€ 25
Protaras	€ 55	€ 65	€ 70	€ 85
Ayia Napa	€ 50	€ 60	€ 65	€ 80
Pissouri	€ 80	€ 95	€ 105	€ 125
Paphos, Peyia	€ 100	€ 120	€ 130	€ 155
Polis, Argaka, Pomos	€ 130	€ 150	€ 170	€ 195
Troodos Area	€ 85	€ 100	€ 110	€ 130
Pyrgos Tyllirias	€ 160	€ 190	€ 210	€ 245
Paphos Airport	Nicosia	€ 110	€ 130	€ 145	€ 170
Limassol	€ 50	€ 60	€ 65	€ 80
Larnaca	€ 100	€ 120	€ 130	€ 155
Famagusta Area	€ 130	€ 150	€ 170	€ 195
Paphos, Peyia	€ 20	€ 25	€ 25	€ 35
Polis, Argakas, Pomos	€ 45	€ 50	€ 60	€ 65
Troodos Area	€ 55	€ 65	€ 70	€ 85
Pyrgos Tyllirias	€ 75	€ 85	€ 95	€ 110

The above fixed fares include the cost of luggage carriage as well as the VAT. Fixed fares also apply on public holidays.

Source: Fixed airport taxi fares from March 1 | Cyprus Mail

Last month saw massive hikes in fines for illegal parking, but was that really enough of an answer?

Cyprus is famed for being overstuffed with civil servants, but there is one type of public officer – the traffic warden – which is rarely sighted in the wild and in…

Read full article, click link below.

Source: Pavement bandits show little sign of letting go | Cyprus Mail

The legal service said on Wednesday that all requests to cancel out extrajudicial traffic fines which became steeper and tougher on October 1, will not be accepted if such requests are outside the framework of the relevant legislation.

“Therefore, all extrajudicial fines should either be paid within the time limit provided by law or, if the complainant so wishes, be challenged before the court, whenever criminal proceedings are instituted for non-payment,” the legal service said in an announcement.

“In exceptional cases, if the complainants thinks that there is an obvious formal error in the issuance of the extrajudicial fine, they can also submit their complaint to the authorities, who, after evaluating it, will refer to the Attorney-general.

The announcement, however, specified that the submission of a request to the competent authorities does not cancel the deadline provided by the legislation for the payment of the fine.

Source: Requests to cancel extrajudicial traffic fines will be rejected, AG’s office says | Cyprus Mail

A 23-year-old man was fined €1,000 and had his licence suspended after he was found speeding during early morning hours on Wednesday.

Limassol district court fined the motorist €900 for speeding and an additional €100 for driving without car tax.

He also his driving licence suspended for a month.

Police arrested the driver a few minutes after midnight on Tuesday on Amathountas Avenue in Limassol. He was driving at 125 km/h on a street with a limit of 50 km/h.

Source: Driver fined €1,000 for speeding and not having car tax | Cyprus Mail

Police booked 1,792 drivers for traffic offences during the first weekend since fines were increased, head of Nicosia traffic police Yiannakis Georgiou told the Cyprus Mail.

“There was a slight decrease in bookings, and we hope it continues,” Georgiou said.

The fines were issued between 6am on Saturday to midnight on Sunday, with 602 violations reported on the highways.

Since the increase on fines on Thursday, police issued a total of 2,363 fines, out of which 2,129 concerned violations that belonged to the revised fines.

“The main traffic violation was speed,” said Georgiou, with 1,054 of the fines issued in the last four days concerned with it.

“Road safety is everyone’s responsibility,” police said in a written announcement on Monday, and asked for the “compliance of all drivers to the traffic code”.

Police said they fined 79 people driving under the influence of alcohol since Thursday, 75 using mobile phones while driving, 87 not wearing a seat belt and 11 motorcyclists who did not wear a helmet. Another 28 drivers were booked for running the red light.

A total of 234 fines were issued against illegal parking, of which 104 concerned illegal parking on sidewalks and 23 concerned illegal parking in disability spaces.

Concerning lack of documents, police booked 329 drivers who did not have a valid road tax, 111 for driving vehicles without road tax and another 24 for driving without insurance. Police also fined 16 drivers for driving vehicles declared immobilised, while five drivers were fined who did not have a valid driving license.

According to the new fine increases, drivers failing to wear a seat belt will be fined €150 and €300 in case of a second offence within three years.

The fine for not wearing a helmet rose from €85 to €200 and then €300 for a second violation.

Using a mobile phone while at the wheel increased to €150, instead of the previous €85, with the fine potentially rising to €300 in case of a second violation within three years.

The fine for parking in a spot reserved for the disabled will rise from €85 to €300, as will the one for drivers who run a red light.

All the revised penalties have been posted on the website www.roadsafetycyprus.gov.cy.

Source: Slight decrease in traffic fines after charges go up | Cyprus Mail