A provincial road traffic official in Gilan says 449 out of 649 people killed in road accidents in the Caspian Sea province in 1394 (2015/16) were pedestrians and motorcyclists. He added that motorcyclists have become a major crisis for the province.
Naser Ale Mohammadi, director general of Gilan road maintenance and traffic department made the remarks at a ‘grand alliance with road safety forum’ to remember road traffic victims held on Tuesday November 16, 2016 near the provincial capital city Rasht.
Recalling designation by the United Nations of the third Sunday of November as the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, the official said: “Our society should become sensitive towards this crisis because the road accident fatalities are very high and irreversible.”
Noting that the number of road traffic accident victims had dropped from 28,000 to 16,000 within the time interval between 1385 (2006/07) and 1394 (2015/16), he said the figure for the province had dropped from 1280 victims in 2006/07 to 649 in 2015/16 thanks to the effective measures taken by provincial officials. He also regretted that 449 out of the 649 victims were pedestrians and motorcyclists.
According to the official road and automotive engineering, road map, the rule of law, and decisiveness in dealing with violators, emergency medical aid, etc. are among effective factors in road safety. He said government credits cannot solve the problem, adding: “We need culture building and training particularly among school children.”
Meanwhile, Ebrahim Gole Sorkhi, the chief executive officer of Road Safety Supporters Society (RSSS) in Gilan said promotion of the road safety culture was a significant cultural parameter, noting that raising people’s awareness was among safety debates. He cited hasty driving, unauthorized speeding and disregard for traffic rules and regulations among the most important factors leading to death tolls.
Considering that road traffic accidents have shaken the family foundations, the official stated that 26 out of every 100,000 people are killed in accidents 70 percent of whom are passersby and motor bike riders.
Also addressing the conference, Chairman of RSSS Board of Director Mohammad Bokharaei said there was a daily financial loss of IRR 490 billion from road traffic accidents. He added that 7 percent of the country’s value added goes to expenses imposed by road accidents.
He said all the people in the country mourn road traffic accident victims in one way or the other, adding: “Every day 50 people are killed in accident prone transportation and road traffic networks. Furthermore, 100 out of 800 victims are disabled and incapacitated every day.”
Bokharaei described the death of 16,500 and injury of 300,000 people in one year a “catastrophe” and noted: “The survivors too are victims of road traffic accidents. Every year, thousands of women become widows and lose their custodians or have to take care of those maimed in road accidents.”
The official further said that every year 4,000 motorcyclists are killed, adding that the figure could be reduced through people’s mobilization. However, he noted, we have still not realized the depth of this crisis.
The grand alliance event was attended by local officials from housing and urban development department, road traffic police, governor general’s office, Rasht governor, Leader’s representative in the province, families of victims and a large group of people.