Road safety: fatal accidents on the rise during the 72-hour weekend period

The number of road accidents is rising, as is the number of fatalities. These are more prevalent at weekends. The worst figures are among car drivers (including families travelling by car) and motorcyclists. The figures for cyclists and pedestrians are improving. This is what emerges from a comparison between the first six months and then June of 2026 with the same period in 2025, carried out by the Asaps Sapidata Observatory, the road safety portal.

“Weekends,” ASAPS points out, “continue to be one of the most critical periods for road safety in Italy.” A look at the statistics compiled by the association reveals that the 72 hours from midnight on Friday to midnight on Sunday have always accounted for a significant proportion of fatalities, and the first half of 2026 is no exception.

A comparison of the figures for 2026 with those for the same period in 2025 reveals a deterioration: ‘the number of fatalities rose from 643 to 658, an increase of 15 deaths (+2.3 per cent)’. “A modest increase,” ASAPS points out, “but a significant one, because it occurs against a backdrop where the number of fatal accidents is virtually identical: 605 in 2025, 604 in 2026.”

The study also highlights another aspect: ‘Mortality is rising not because of a higher frequency of accidents, but because of their greater severity: more accidents resulting in multiple fatalities, more collisions that leave no chance of survival.’

June partially narrowed this gap, bringing it to +15, but the figure remains positive and confirms a structural problem with Italian weekends. “Weekend accident rates,” the Asaps–Sapidata Observatory points out, “remain a complex phenomenon, influenced by behaviour, traffic flows, environmental conditions and the types of vehicles involved.”