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524 die in 467 road accidents in June


Published : 04 Jul 2022 11:58 PM | Updated : 05 Jul 2022 04:55 PM

A total of 524 people, including 68 women and 73 children were killed and 821 others injured in 467 road accidents across the country in June.

Road Safety Foundation, a non-government organisation, collected the data based on reports in nine national dailies, seven online news portals and electronic media. 

The number of victims and crashes involving motorcycles was the highest in the report published by the Road Safety Foundation on Monday.

The report said 204 people died in 197 motorcycle accidents that accounted for 38.93 percent of the total deaths and 42.18 percent of total accidents.

Among all the divisions Dhaka saw the highest number of deaths and accidents, with 117 casualties in 139 accidents. Dhaka district recorded 41 deaths in 29 crashes. 

Meanwhile, the Sylhet division recorded 14 deaths in 13 accidents, the lowest in Bangladesh. Nine accidents in Rangamati, Magura, Lalmonirhat and Sunamganj claimed no lives.

Of the total deaths, 78 were students of different educational institutions in the country. The accidents have left 107 pedestrians dead, which is 20.41 percent of total deaths. Besides, 86 drivers and their helpers died in crashes which is 16.41 percent of total deaths.

Around 174 road crashes, or 37.25 percent of the total, were reported on regional roads, while 159 (34.04 percent) others were reported on highways, 72 (15.41 percent) on village roads, 56 (12 percent) on city roads and 6 others in other places, the Road Safety Foundation said.

The number of vehicles involved in the accidents was 793 including 212 (26.73 percent) motorcycles, 130 trucks, 78 buses, 24 covered vans, 54 pick-ups, 11 trolleys, 5 lorries, 13 tractors, 2 oil-carrying tankers, 2 prison vans, one city corporation truck, 8 microbuses, 13 private cars, 4 ambulances, 2 jeeps, one police pick-up, one army truck, 149 three-wheelers, 51 locally made vehicles, 23 non-mechanical and 9 other vehicles.

During the same period nine people were killed in eight boat accidents. At least 16 people were killed and four others injured in 18 railway accidents.

The report states that the reasons behind road accidents include reckless speeding, driver incompetence and physical and mental illness; no fixed payment or work hours, low-speed vehicles on highways; reckless motorcycling by young people; lack of awareness about traffic laws, lack of BRTA capacity, poor traffic management, and extortion in the public transport sector.

The study recommends taking up initiatives to increase skilled drivers, fixing work hours and payment, increasing BRTA's capacity, ensuring uninterrupted application of traffic laws by transport owners, workers, passengers and pedestrians; introducing separate lanes (service lanes) for low-speed vehicles on the highway, constructing road dividers on all highways in phases, stopping extortion on public transport, reviving railways and waterways, and implementing "Road Transport Act-2018".

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