国际英语新闻:11 motorists dead in Austria during Pentecost weekend

VIENNA, June 10 (Xinhua) -- Eleven people have died in traffic accidents in Austria over the Pentecost long weekend, almost three times more than 2013, the Interior Ministry stated Tuesday.

In all seven motorcycle riders, two car drivers, a scooter rider and a cyclist were involved in fatal accidents over the June 6 to 9 religious holiday break, Der Standard newspaper reported.

The road fatalities were a marked increased over the four deaths over the same weekend in 2013, the lowest on record, though the 2012 total saw nine fatalities. The highest total for the Pentecost weekend remains 45 deaths, recorded in 1979.

In all 569 traffic accidents were reported with 464 involving injuries. The police also reported a sharp 25 percent increase in the number of speeders with 58,190 cases.

Additionally 528 motorists were charged with drink driving, 241 of them having their drivers licenses provisionally suspended.

The Interior Ministry said taking the whole week into account the toll increased to 18 deaths, not including a serious accident in the state of Lower Austria on Saturday where four people died after their car veered over the side of a bend on an alpine road, tumbling 150 metres.

Authorities said the nature of the circumstances count it as an alpine accident rather than a road-based one.