A NEW report on road safety from 2016 to 2017 shows car crash deaths rose by almost 3,000 and academics warn this might move Thailand up to the number 1 spot with most road fatalities in the world, Thai News Agency said today (Nov. 13).
A report by Provincial Road Accident Prevention and Resolution Program and Road Safety Operation Center revealed that from 2016 to 2017 there were 22,356 road traffic deaths which is an increase of 2,877 from 2015’s total of 19,479.
The report found that 3 out of 4 people who died in road accidents were men and highest number of deaths were among workers in the 15 to 29 age bracket.
Mr Preeda Chatupong, a lecturer at King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang, said the number of road fatalities varied from province to province and the top 6 provinces with the most road deaths per 100,000 people were all in the east with these being Rayong with 72 deaths; Sa Kaew 69; Chonburi 58; Chanthaburi 57; Nakhon Naiyok 56 and Prachinburi 55.
This is so because a lot of traveling takes place in these provinces as there are several tourist destinations there.
Bangkok has the lowest number of road deaths in the country with this being 14.30 per 100,000 people. Yala comes next with 17.2; Mae Hong Sorn 18.2; Satun 18.3; Amart Charoen 18.4 and Pattani 20.
Of 45% of road fatalities motorcyclists number the highest at 39% pedestrians 5% and cyclists 1%.
Dr Withaya Chartbanchachai, head of both World Health Organization Collaboration Center and Khon Kaen Hospital, said the report is shocking because road deaths increased sharply in 2016 with over 22,000 dying out of a population of over 60 million baht.
This is a massive loss and does not include those who get injured totaling around millions each year with damage being around 500 billion baht.
The figures mentioned in this report are close to WHO’s estimates and this makes it scarier because the total could push Thailand to rank first in the world when it comes to road fatalities rising from number 2 spot it previously occupied.
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Top: Officials talking about the latest road safety report at today’s press briefing. Photo: Thai News Agency
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