Georgia remains at a high level in terms of road injuries and fatalities, ranking first in Europe. In Georgia, an average of 11 people per 100,000 population die annually in road accidents, whereas the best European rates are 2–3, and the highest in Europe is 7, recorded in Romania, stated Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Alexander Darakhvelidze at the parliamentary Human Rights Committee meeting, where he presented the initiative to increase existing fines.

According to Darakhvelidze, the current sanctions fail to provide a preventive effect.

“In 2024, there were 7,587 recorded cases of injuries from accidents, with 444 fatalities. According to the data for the first nine months of the current year, 6,041 people were injured, and 345 died. Compared to the same nine-month period last year, the fatality rate increased by 41, and the injury rate by 637.

The number of accidents has also increased. Most accidents and injuries are caused by speeding. Last year, over 1.5 million fines were issued for exceeding the speed limit. The rate of speeding violations increased by 41.96% within overall traffic violations,” Darakhvelidze said.

He also noted that the number of registered vehicles in Georgia has increased significantly.

“As of the first nine months of this year, 1,972,692 vehicles are registered in Georgia and are owned by citizens. Regarding cars imported from abroad, foreign nationals brought 1,151,943 vehicles into Georgia during the same period. In total, there are over 3.1 million vehicles in the country, which increases the probability of road accidents,” Darakhvelidze stated at the parliamentary Human Rights Committee meeting.

The Parliament has begun reviewing legislative changes that will tighten driver responsibility for traffic violations and increase the fines.

According to the legislative package developed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs:

Fines for violating road maneuvering rules will increase up to 100 GEL. At the same time, the points assigned to the driver’s license for this violation will decrease by 20 points.

Fines for exceeding the speed limit by 15–40 km/h will increase from 50 to 100 GEL.

Fines for not using a seatbelt, either by the driver or passenger, will increase to 50 GEL, and the points on the driver’s license will decrease by 10.

Fines for using a mobile phone while driving will increase to 50 GEL.

For violations of stopping/parking rules, fines in cities like Kutaisi, Batumi, Mtskheta, Rustavi, Gori, Telavi, Poti, Zugdidi, and Georgian resorts will increase to 50 GEL, similar to Tbilisi.

Additional responsibility is introduced for driving in the opposite direction on a bus lane (except for buses), with a fine of 200 GEL.

A new violation is defined for stopping/parking on sidewalks or pedestrian crossings, carrying a fine of 100 GEL. Additionally, if the conditions set by law are met, the vehicle may be towed to a specially protected parking lot.