The economic and social cost of road accidents: the portuguese case

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to assess the economic and social costs of road accidents in Portugal. It was conducted by the Center for Economic Analysis of Social Regulation (CARS) at the Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa, commissioned by the National Authority for Road Safety (Autoridade Nacional de Segurança Rodoviária), hereinafter ANSR, and is aimed at planning and coordinating the support of the Government’s policy on road safety at the national level. Comprehending these costs constitutes the first phase towards further analysis of the causes of traffic accidents, allowing for the implementation of policies that lead to their minimization, contributing thereof to the maximization of social welfare. The empirical ascertainment of the social costs of accidents is an indicator of the magnitude of the social problem resulting therefrom, since it is virtually impossible, through any of the methods used herein, to accurately determine such a social cost.