In its latest road safety report on Wednesday, the Road Safety Foundation (RSF) disclosed an alarming trend of road accidents in the country, with a solid fatality toll of 404 deaths and 709 injured in just April last.
The RSF report notes that despite years of policy discussions, awareness campaigns, and institutional pledges, the road mishap scale still remains the persistent national tragedy - rather than a solvable problem.
The dominance of motorcycle-related fatality, the high toll on pedestrians, and the concentration of accidents on regional highways point to systemic failures in the traffic management, enforcement, and transport regulation.
Now what makes the situation more concerning is not only the scale of the fatality, but also the predictability of their causes, including reckless driving, unfit vehicles, and weak regulatory oversight.
The dead included 53 women and 48 children, the RSF confirmed this information in a press release issued on Wednesday.
Motorcycle accidents contributed to the highest number of deaths, with about 113 people died in 142 motorcycle accidents, nearly 28 per cent (PC) of the total fatality.
Besides, 102 pedestrians were killed, representing 25.24pc of the total deaths. Some 46 transport workers, including drivers and their assistants, also lost their lives during April period.
The RSF compiled the report based on information published in nine national dailies, 17 online news portals, and various electronic media outlets.
In the same month, four people were killed and 11 were injured in seven waterway accidents, while 34 railway accidents left 26 dead and 17 injured.
According to the RSF's observation, the highest number of accidents occurred on regional roads. Among the total crashes, 193 (41.68pc) took place on regional roads, 188 (36.28pc) on national highways, 57 (12.31pc) on city roads, and 45 (9.71pc) on rural roads.
