Children not spared as road crashes kill 1.16m people in 2025 — WHO

The World Health Organization has disclosed that road traffic injuries remain the leading cause of death among children and youth aged 5–29 years globally.

This is as it revealed that road traffic crashes still claimed 1.16 million people’s lives in 2025, despite a 21% reduction in global road traffic deaths between 2011 and 2025.

The global health body disclosed this in new data released on its website. The new WHO data comes as global leaders adopted a new United Nations General Assembly progress declaration on road safety.

The declaration aims to boost global action to meet the Sustainable Development Goal target of a 50% reduction in road deaths and serious injuries by 2030 compared with the levels in 2021.

The WHO says the recorded 21% reduction in road traffic deaths between 2011 and 2025 was coming despite the addition of more than one billion motor vehicles to the world’s roads.

“The world has experienced profound changes in road traffic during this time, with the emergence of new modes of transport and a sharp rise in motorcycle use.

“Despite this progress, however, road traffic crashes still claimed 1.16 million people’s lives in 2025. Road traffic injuries remain the leading cause of death among children and youth aged 5–29 years,” the data read in part.

Commenting on the data, the WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, said the reduction progress shows that change is possible when countries invest in safe road systems.

“In the last 15 years, we’ve made real progress in reducing road deaths, despite surging vehicle numbers and major shifts in how people move.

“I commend countries for the strong political declaration they are adopting today, which aims to accelerate action to ensure more roads are designed for people first, not motor vehicles, with safety as priority. All road deaths are preventable, and none are acceptable,” he said.

With the rise of ride-hailing and delivery apps, the data showed that the number of motorcycles more than tripled between 2011 and 2025.

“Deaths among motorcyclists now account for nearly a third of the world’s road fatalities. Wearing a safe motorcycle helmet reduces the risk of death in a crash by more than six times,” it added.

Commenting, the WHO’s Director of the Department of Health Determinants, Promotion and Prevention, Dr Etienne Krug.

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“More than half of all road deaths are people who aren’t even in a car – they are walking, cycling, or riding a motorcycle. When roads are designed as if only car drivers matter, these people are left dangerously exposed.

“We know what works – strong laws and enforcement, safe infrastructure and vehicles with particular attention to lowering speed and addressing impaired driving. This declaration means we must all go further and faster,” Krug said.

Across the world, the data added that 10 countries reduced road deaths by 50% in the decade to 2021, and more than half of all countries reported falling fatalities in that period.

“Yet progress is uneven, with a 36% drop in deaths in the WHO European Region, a 15% drop in the Western Pacific Region, a 2% drop in the WHO South-East Asian Region, no change in rates in the Americas, and a 17% rise in deaths in the WHO African Region,” it said.

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