Over 200 killed in 409 road crashes in Dhaka last year

At least 219 people were killed, and 511 were injured in 409 road crashes in Dhaka last year, highlighting poor traffic safety amid mismanagement of urban transport, said Road Safety Foundation yesterday.

Men accounted for the vast majority of the fatalities, with 176 deaths (80.36 percent) followed by 25 women (11.41 percent) and 18 children (8.21 percent), the organisation said in a press statement.

The organisation compiled the data primarily from media reports.

It said pedestrians were the most vulnerable group, making up 47 percent of the deaths, while motorcycle riders and passengers accounted for 43 percent. The remaining 10 percent were drivers and passengers of buses, rickshaws, CNG-run auto-rickshaws and other vehicles.

An analysis of the timing of crashes shows that 42 percent of the crashes occurred at night, the highest among all time periods. This was followed by 18 percent in the morning, 13 percent in the afternoon, 11 percent at dawn, 10 percent at noon, and six percent in the evening.

Heavy vehicles were involved in a significant number of crashes. Trucks, covered vans, pickups, tankers and garbage trucks were involved in 35 percent of the accidents, while buses were involved in 25 percent.

Motorcycles accounted for 22 percent followed by three-wheelers, including auto-rickshaws, CNGs and Lagunas (12 percent) while other vehicles were involved in the rest of the crashes.

The organisation blamed chronic traffic mismanagement for the rising number of road crashes and persistent congestion in the capital. The absence of a bypass road allows heavy goods vehicles to move inside the city at reckless speeds between 10:00pm and 6:00am, increasing risks for pedestrians, particularly while crossing roads, the press release said.

Traffic congestion has also led to growing intolerance and impatience among drivers, which is contributing to road crashes, it said.

Several areas of Dhaka, including Jatrabari, Demra, Mohammadpur, Kuril Bishwa Road and Airport Road, have emerged as major accident hotspots, it said.

It identified nine major reasons, including faulty vehicles, reckless driving, and plying different modes of vehicles on the same roads, for road crashes.

It gave 14 recommendations, including withdrawing all vehicles with expired economic life and operating buses under particular companies to reduce the number of deaths.