75 accidents per year: lower speeds will increase safety

A new warning system, including four speed cameras, has been installed on the A14 motorway, because the A14 is regarded as an accident hotspot, according to a report from the police. Is that true? We have the numbers.

Four new speed cameras went into operation on the A14 motorway last week, but only one of them is currently in operation (we reported on the 28th March and 7th April). They are part of the new Speed Harmonization and Hazard Warning system (GHGW: Geschwindigkeitsharmonisierung und Gefahrenwarnung). This system automatically detects traffic volumes, and measures the density of the traffic. When traffic is light, the speed limit remains at 120 km/h. When traffic increases significantly, the speed limit is reduced to 100 or 80 km/h. "In heavy traffic, 80 km/h is the ideal speed, as all the road users, such as lorries and cars, are traveling at the same speed," says Gaudenz Oetterli, media spokesperson for the Federal Roads Office (FedEx).

An above-average number of rear-end collisions occur on the A14
According to the police and the Federal Roads Office (FedEx), the A14 motorway from the Rotsee Lake junction to the Rütihof junction is a hotspot for accidents. A total of 75 accidents occurred last year. There were 89 accidents in 2023, and 79 in 2022. What is striking about these statistics is the high percentage of rear-end collisions. "Compared to other motorway sections, an above-average number of such accidents occur on the A14," says Gaudenz Oetterli. 

The main causes of these rear-end collisions are drivers not maintaining sufficient distance from the vehicle in front, driving in a manner inappropriate for the traffic conditions, inattention, driving inappropriately for weather conditions, and failure to observe the brake lights of the vehicle in front. "All of this could be avoided by adaptive driving, and that's precisely where the new hazard warning comes in," says Gaudenz Oetterli. Experience also shows that drivers drive correctly at locations where there are clearly speed checks, while speeding more or less everywhere else. This endangers the safety of road users.

Traffic jam on the A14 just before the Buchrain exit towards Lucerne: The warning system shows a speed of 80 km/h. Right: the radar camera that went into operation last week    
The Astra has installed four new radar boxes        Photos: Patrick Hürlimann
 

Accidents on the A14
Number of accidents per year, broken down by accident type
                                                                          2024    2023    2022
Total                                                                    75         89        79
Rear-end collisions                                           47         59        43
Skidding and single vehicle accidents          18         20        23
Overtaking or lane-changing accidents          9           8        13
Others                                                                   1           2          0

Source: Federal Roads Office (FedEx)
 

Accidents on the A14
Number of accidents per year, broken down by accident severity
                                                                          2024    2023    2022 
Total                                                                   75        89       79
Accidents with serious injuries                       2          1          1
Accidents with minor injuries                        27        33       24
Accidents with only property damage         46        55       54

Source: Federal Roads Office (FedEx)

Increasing safety with radar devices
But why is there a radar speed trap system as part of the hazard warning system? "The radar system is there to enforce the specified speed limits and to thereby increase safety," says Gaudenz Oetterli. A lower speed is the decisive factor in ensuring that a potential accident has less serious consequences. The police themselves do not publish figures on traffic violations at individual checkpoints. But police checks on the A14 motorway have shown that many drivers do not adhere to the applicable speed limits, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the system.

A non-representative survey, as well as comments in the Zuger Zeitung newspaper and on social media show that the new dynamic speed system is being received positively by the majority. Nevertheless, many consider the high number of speed cameras in a short distance to be a mere money-making scheme rather than a road safety measure. 

From the start of April, four radar speed measuring boxes have been permanently installed over a distance of ten kilometres from the Reussport Tunnel on the A2 to the exit of the Sankt Katharina rest area, but, according to the police, not all of them are in operation at the same time. In addition, several readers argue that speed cameras and dynamic speed adjustments lead to unnecessary braking manoeuvres, and thereby cause traffic jams. Others argue that speed cameras do not contribute to safety, but rather to driver uncertainty and more accidents. Astra declined to comment on the statements. Gaudenz Oetterli says: "Those who drive at the correct speed will not be caught speeding and therefore will not have to pay a fine."