Road accident deaths rise 18.75% during Eid despite BRTA measures

Despite various preparations by the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) to ensure a safe Eid journey this year, the number of road accident fatalities has increased by 18.75% compared to last Eid, said the organisation's Chairman Nur Mohammad Mazumder.

During the 17 days of this year's Eid journey (4-20 April), an average of 19 people died in road accidents each day. In contrast, during last year's Eid-ul-Fitr journey, the daily average was 16 deaths, Nur Mohammad said during a press briefing in Banani on Sunday.

He said that the number of accidents has not increased compared to last year, but the number of deaths has. Last year, 253 road accidents occurred during the 15 days of Eid, resulting in 239 deaths and 510 injuries.

BRTA had made various preparations before Eid to prevent accidents. These included addressing congestion points on highways, controlling motorcycles, preventing three-wheeled human hauliers and illegal vehicles from using the roads, not carrying passengers in goods vehicles, banning trucks, covered vans, and lorries on highways for three days before and after Eid, and strict monitoring.

On the issue of responsibility for the accidents, the BRTA chairman acknowledged that all stakeholders, including BRTA itself, shared some level of blame.

"We are continuing our efforts. Mobile courts are now being operated regularly to control accidents," he said.

However, he claimed that accidents cannot be controlled due to a lack of awareness.

A mix of factors, including reckless driving (speeding, losing control, risky overtaking), pedestrian carelessness, illegal vehicles on highways (three-wheelers), and disregard for traffic rules (signs, markings, parking), were noted as the major causes of accidents.

BRTA chairman acknowledged that law enforcement alone is not enough to address the complex issue of road accidents. He highlighted the shortage of manpower, stating that the authority has only 8 magistrates to deal with millions of vehicles nationwide.

Nur Mohammad noted the need for a collective effort to tackle road accidents. He called for a social movement where everyone takes responsibility and adheres to traffic rules.

In collaboration with police, highway police, transport owners, and workers, BRTA plans to launch daily road surveillance and regular operations to curb the use of illegal, outdated, and route-permitless vehicles and drivers without driving licences.

Nur Mohammad assured that the problem would be resolved by next month. Outdated and route-permitless vehicles will be considered unfit and sent to dumping yards.

From 4-20 April, 286 road accidents occurred nationwide, resulting in 320 deaths and 462 injuries.

The highest number of road accident fatalities (73) occurred in Dhaka Division, while Sylhet Division had the lowest (17).

Motorcycles were involved in the most road accidents, accounting for 117 or 28.61%. Buses and minibuses were the second most common victims, with 77 accidents.