Chinese travelers are nearly seven times more likely than US citizens to be injured in traffic accidents in Iceland, data from the Icelandic Transportation Authority reveals. In 2017 39 Chinese travelers were injured in traffic accidents on Icelandic roads. The second largest group are US travelers: 38 US travelers were injured in traffic accidents last year. The data reveals that 13.3 out of every 100,000 foreign travelers (0.013%) is involved in an accident while in Iceland.
Read more: Number of foreign travelers involved in road accidents has doubled since 2011
These figures only tell half of the story, as nearly 500,000 more Americans than Chinese visited Iceland in 2017. A total of 576,403 US travelers visited Iceland in 2017, compared to only 86,003 Chinese travelers. This means that one in every 48.3 out of every 100,000 Chinese travelers is involved in a road accident in Iceland, compared to just 7.3 out of every 100,000 US travelers. The other two groups of travelers most likely to be involved in traffic accidents in Iceland are Spanish and Italian travelers: 32.7 out of every 100,000 Spanish travelers was injured in a traffic accident in Iceland and 31 out of every 100,000 Italian travelers.
Finnish drivers appear to be safest
Familiarity with winter driving and driving in conditions similar to those found in Iceland appear to be a major reason for this pattern. The data reveals, unsurprisingly, that Finnish and Norwegian travelers are least likely to be involved in traffic accidents in Iceland. Finnish drivers are safest, as just 1,1 out of every 100,000 Finnish travelers is involved in an accident in Iceland, followed by Norwegian travelers: Only 1,9 out of every 100,000.
Read more: This is how accidents happen: Video shows rental car repeatedly swerve into wrong lane
British travelers appear to be well prepared for driving in Iceland, just 5 out of 100,000. It might come as a surprise that Canadian travelers are more likely to be involved in accidents than both American and British drivers: 10.8 of every 100,000 Canadian travelers is injured in an accident in Iceland.
A spokesman for the Transportation Authority told the local news site Vísir that these figures must be taken with a grain of salt: They do not distinguish between drivers and passengers, and say nothing about who was at fault in the accidents in question. The 2017 figures include, for example, 19 Chinese travelers who were injured in a single tour bus accident in December. One person, a young woman in her 20s was killed in the accident. None of these people was responsible for the accident.
Chinese travelers are nearly seven times more likely than US citizens to be injured in traffic accidents in Iceland, data from the Icelandic Transportation Authority reveals. In 2017 39 Chinese travelers were injured in traffic accidents on Icelandic roads. The second largest group are US travelers: 38 US travelers were injured in traffic accidents last year. The data reveals that 13.3 out of every 100,000 foreign travelers (0.013%) is involved in an accident while in Iceland.
Read more: Number of foreign travelers involved in road accidents has doubled since 2011
These figures only tell half of the story, as nearly 500,000 more Americans than Chinese visited Iceland in 2017. A total of 576,403 US travelers visited Iceland in 2017, compared to only 86,003 Chinese travelers. This means that one in every 48.3 out of every 100,000 Chinese travelers is involved in a road accident in Iceland, compared to just 7.3 out of every 100,000 US travelers. The other two groups of travelers most likely to be involved in traffic accidents in Iceland are Spanish and Italian travelers: 32.7 out of every 100,000 Spanish travelers was injured in a traffic accident in Iceland and 31 out of every 100,000 Italian travelers.
Finnish drivers appear to be safest
Familiarity with winter driving and driving in conditions similar to those found in Iceland appear to be a major reason for this pattern. The data reveals, unsurprisingly, that Finnish and Norwegian travelers are least likely to be involved in traffic accidents in Iceland. Finnish drivers are safest, as just 1,1 out of every 100,000 Finnish travelers is involved in an accident in Iceland, followed by Norwegian travelers: Only 1,9 out of every 100,000.
Read more: This is how accidents happen: Video shows rental car repeatedly swerve into wrong lane
British travelers appear to be well prepared for driving in Iceland, just 5 out of 100,000. It might come as a surprise that Canadian travelers are more likely to be involved in accidents than both American and British drivers: 10.8 of every 100,000 Canadian travelers is injured in an accident in Iceland.
A spokesman for the Transportation Authority told the local news site Vísir that these figures must be taken with a grain of salt: They do not distinguish between drivers and passengers, and say nothing about who was at fault in the accidents in question. The 2017 figures include, for example, 19 Chinese travelers who were injured in a single tour bus accident in December. One person, a young woman in her 20s was killed in the accident. None of these people was responsible for the accident.
