Despite a special road safety campaign over the weekend, 44 people died on Poland’s roads, higher than the previous weekend before the campaign began.

Police HQ reports that in 308 accidents, 44 died, 542 were injured and over 1000 drivers were caught drunk behind the wheel.

In the first weekend of July, 26 people died on the roads.

“The number of casualties is evidence that road accidents in Poland is a big social problem and in the area of road safety we still have much to do,” Marek Konkolewski at the Bureau of Traffic Police Headquarters told TVN 24.

He would not comment when pressed on the effects of a special campaign by police on Poland’s roads over the weekend, code named “Weekend Without Victims”, which appears to have had no effect at all on casualty rates.

The "Weekend without Victims" was under control of the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways under the patronage of Minister of Infrastructure Cezary Grabarczyk. The drivers were able to receive information via text message about the current situation on roads in selected regions. (pg)