Fatal road accidents dropped by 30 per cent last year in Montreal, police said Friday, and pedestrians are more likely to die in a crash than car occupants. 

In 2007, more than six in 10 traffic deaths was a pedestrian, who was likely breaking a law when the accident happened, police reported in their annual road safety review, released Friday.

Thirty-eight people were killed on Montreal's roads last year, including 24 pedestrians.

Overall, 18 fewer people died in traffic accidents in 2007 compared with 2006, a 30 per cent drop, police said.

Collisions causing serious injury fell by 29 per cent, while accidents with minor injury dropped by six per cent, said Pierre Paul Pichette, an assistant director with the Montreal police.

But slightly more than half of the pedestrians who died last year weren't respecting traffic laws, Pichette said. 

The force issued 36,000 tickets to motorists who weren't respecting crosswalks, but officers also ticketed 8,000 pedestrians caught disobeying traffic laws, he said.

"We have to issue tickets to pedestrians" to change peoples' habits, Pichette said. "We won't do it, that type of change in one night, and not in one year. We have to pursue to be really vigilant, and to be patient."

A new pedestrian charter — part of the city of Montreal's transport plan, to be unveiled next month — will help those efforts and protect pedestrians, he said.

Montreal police recently hired more than 130 new traffic officers to help enforce road safety.