Road crashes kill 484 in January

At least 484 people were killed and 673 injured in 427 road accidents throughout the country in January this year.

The accident rate increased to 25.58% and fatalities to 8.76%, compared to the same period of last year, according to the Road Safety Foundation (RSF).

At least 445 lives were lost in 340 road accidents in January 2020, said the RSF on Saturday.

Between January 1 and January 31 of 2021, 168 people were killed in 159 motorcycle accidents - 37.23% of total road accidents.

A total of 53 drivers and helpers were killed during the same period of 2021 - 10.95% of total fatalities.

Also, seven people died, four got injured, and six remained missing in four waterway accidents.

Fourteen people were killed, and six injured in 11 railway accidents during the same period.

153 accidents - 35.83% - occurred on highways, 107 - 25.05% - took place on regional roads, and 11 - 2.57% - on other roads.

Also, the highest number of accidents took place in Dhaka division and the lowest in Sylhet division.

Unfit vehicles, reckless driving, and disregard for traffic rules were among the reasons behind the accidents.

RSF came up with the findings based on the reports of seven daily newspapers, five online portals, and television channels.

Also, 5,227 people died on Bangladeshi roads in 4,702 accidents in 2019, said Nirapad Sarak Chai.

The World Bank report “Delivering Road Safety in Bangladesh”, published in February 2020, said: “The country needs to invest an estimated extra $7.8 billion over the next decade to halve its road crash fatalities.”

“The high death rate on Bangladesh's roads is caused by a chronic lack of investment in systemic, targeted, and sustained road safety programs.”

The report also shows that the annual road crash deaths per capita in Bangladesh are twice the average rate for high-income countries and five times that of the best-performing countries in the world.

Children and the working-age population were most affected by road crash injuries in Bangladesh, the report added.