57 children among 487 killed in January road crashes: RSF report

At least 57 children were among the 487 people killed in 559 road accidents across Bangladesh in January this year, according to a report by the Road Safety Foundation.

The accidents left another 1,194 people injured during the month. The deceased also included 68 women, the report said.

Motorcycles accounted for a large portion of the fatalities, with 196 deaths in 208 crashes — 40.24 percent of total deaths and 37.20 percent of all accidents. Pedestrians comprised 27.10 percent of the victims, with 132 killed, while 67 drivers and their assistants died, making up 13.75 percent of the total fatalities.

In the same period, four waterway accidents claimed six lives and injured seven others, while 41 railway-related incidents left 32 people dead and 17 injured.

The report was compiled using data from nine national dailies, seven online news portals, electronic media outlets and the foundation’s own records.

Motorcycle riders and passengers were the worst affected group. They were followed by passengers of three-wheelers — including easy bikes, CNG-run auto-rickshaws and auto-vans — who accounted for 77 deaths (15.81 percent). Bus passengers were killed in 21 incidents, while 28 deaths involved occupants of trucks, covered vans, pickups and tractors.

Nine people died in crashes involving private cars, microbuses, ambulances and jeeps, and 13 were killed while travelling in locally made vehicles such as nosimon and votvoti. Additionally, 11 cyclists lost their lives.

Road type and accident patterns

According to the analysis, 27.90 percent of the crashes occurred on national highways, 37.03 percent on regional roads, 15.20 percent on rural roads and 18.42 percent on city streets, with the remainder taking place elsewhere.

By accident type, 37.38 percent resulted from vehicles losing control, 24.15 percent from head-on collisions, 24.50 percent from vehicles striking pedestrians and 12.88 percent from rear-end crashes.

Heavy vehicles — including trucks, covered vans and tankers — were involved in 28.58 percent of accidents, followed by motorcycles (24.51 percent) and three-wheelers (18.53 percent). Passenger buses accounted for 12.20 percent of the incidents.

Division-wise data showed Dhaka Division recorded the highest number of accidents and fatalities, with 143 crashes killing 119 people. Sylhet Division reported the lowest toll, with 18 deaths from 24 accidents.

In the capital, Dhaka, 26 accidents claimed 18 lives and injured 41 others.

Based on media reports, the victims included police personnel, teachers, doctors, journalists, lawyers, bank and insurance staff, NGO workers, political activists, businesspeople, sales representatives, garment and construction workers, people with disabilities and 57 students.

The foundation cited faulty vehicles and poor road conditions, overspeeding, reckless and unfit driving, absence of fixed wages and working hours for drivers, slow-moving vehicles on highways, risky motorcycle riding by youths, weak awareness and enforcement of traffic laws, inadequate traffic management, capacity constraints at the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, and extortion within the public transport sector as key causes of the accidents.