Helsinki has reached a remarkable milestone that cities around the world dream of achieving, a full year without a single traffic death. The Finnish capital’s most recent fatal traffic accident occurred in July 2024, and officials are calling the 12-month streak exceptional, crediting a combination of smart city planning and community commitment to road safety. More than half of Helsinki’s streets now have speed limits of just 30 km/h, a dramatic change from 50 years ago when most roads allowed 50 km/h speeds.
The transformation didn’t happen overnight but required decades of sustained effort, including upgraded pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, better traffic enforcement, and data-driven planning to identify dangerous intersections. Traffic engineer Roni Utriainen noted that excellent public transport reduces car use, which in turn decreases serious accidents, while improved vehicle technology has made all forms of transportation safer than ever. The positive trend extends beyond fatalities, Helsinki recorded just 277 injury-causing accidents in the past year, compared to nearly 1,000 annually in the late 1980s when traffic deaths commonly approached 30 per year. This achievement brings Helsinki closer to the EU’s ambitious “Vision Zero” goal of eliminating all traffic deaths by 2050, proving that with the right commitment and strategies, even the most challenging safety goals can become reality.