Enjoy the beauty of Iceland, but keep your eyes on the road

Driving through Iceland – an increasingly popular destination for American travelers – is an incredible, magical experience with waterfalls, glaciers and breathtaking geography almost everywhere. The highways are pothole-free, the accident rate is low and the country was called the safest country in the world in a report released Tuesday by an insurance company, but the roads can pose dangers to unsuspecting tourists.

Iceland’s two-lane, 1,320-kilometer Ring Road (Route 1) runs through the entire country and is the main road used to reach popular tourist attractions. The Beltway has no shoulders or guardrails, and much of the highway is elevated, potentially causing a vehicle that strays from the road to overturn.

Car rental companies offer many useful safety tips on their websites, but a check of several companies’ websites found none that warned about the lack of shoulders and guardrails or the elevated roadway.

According to the Icelandic Transport Authority, 13 people have been killed in road accidents so far this year. That is the largest number since the entire year of 2018, when fifteen people died, the newspaper says Reykjaviik vine, an English-language magazine.

The transport authority’s website has more detailed statistics for the first five months of this year. During that period, 62 people were seriously injured and 460 people were slightly injured in car accidents. There were seven fatal accidents, 46 serious accidents, 296 minor accidents and 2,920 incidents without injuries during the five months.

Some accidents reported this year:

*On September 24, a car overturned in Skagi, northwest Iceland. Police said the driver was killed and a passenger was taken to a hospital by ambulance Iceland Monitor news and information website.

*On August 12, the website reported that the Ring Road was temporarily closed near the Gígjukvísl River after two cars collided and four people – American and Spanish tourists – were injured.

*On May 25, 27 people were injured, including some with serious injuries, when a bus overturned on the Rangárvallavegur road near Stokkalækur, according to the Iceland Monitor.

*On January 12, two foreign tourists were killed and six others were airlifted to a hospital after two cars collided head-on on the Ring Road near Vatnajökull National Park, the Reykjaviik vine reported.

Iceland and other Scandinavian countries “are among the best performing countries in Europe and the world when it comes to road deaths per capita,” says the Icelandic Transport Authority. “The countries have seen a steady decline in fatalities over the past decade, although the numbers in Iceland and the Faroe Islands are too small to provide an indication of trends.”

Iceland “has seen consistent improvement in road safety in recent years,” says a report by the International Transport Forum, part of the intergovernmental Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. “However, there were many road deaths between 2015 and 2018, partly because more foreign tourists were driving rental cars.”

Many accidents occur along the Ring Road, which passes through many sparsely populated areas, the forum’s report said. The road “may be subject to adverse weather conditions including snow, frigid temperatures, high winds and rain. In addition, single-lane wood or steel bridges, blind curves and gravel road surfaces may create additional hazardous conditions for travelers in some areas.”

The Icelandic Search and Rescue Association provides safety advice.

“Conditions in Iceland may be different than you are used to,” the association warns. “The beautiful scenery can easily distract the driver’s attention from the road, or sheep can jump into the road in front of your car. To reach your destination safely, you must give your full attention to driving.”

After arriving in Iceland after a long flight, often very early in the morning, it can be a bad idea to drive, the association says.

Holdur Car Rental, Europcar’s franchisee in Iceland, warns renters on its website that driving in Iceland can be more challenging than in other countries because “you can experience a variety of weather conditions at any time of the year.” Thick fog, snow and strong winds can “create additional challenges,” the car rental company says.

Hertz’s website warns renters that the weather in Iceland changes quickly, even in summer. “Never be surprised if you experience the four seasons in one day: excellent weather and glorious sunshine in the morning, and suddenly it starts to rain or snow without any warning signs,” the website says.