A total of 586 people were killed and 1,238 injured in 597 accidents across roads, railways and waterways in January, according to data compiled by the Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity (BJKS).
Of the total, 546 people were killed and 1,204 injured in 552 road accidents, while 37 railway accidents killed 33 and injured 28 people. Besides, eight waterway accidents claimed seven lives, injured six, and left three missing, said a report prepared by the rights body.
The BJKS's Accident Monitoring Cell prepared the report based on the information published by national, regional and online media outlets in the month. The report was made available through a press release on Sunday, signed by its Secretary General Mozammel Haque Chowdhury.
Motorcycle accidents accounted for a large share of fatalities. A total of 209 motorcycle crashes killed 223 people and injured 132, representing nearly 38 per cent of the total road accidents, around 41 per cent of total road deaths, and approximately 11 per cent of total injuries.
Dhaka division recorded the highest number of road accidents, with 132 incidents resulting in 133 deaths and 328 injuries. Sylhet division reported the lowest, with 29 accidents that left 28 people dead and 63 injured.
Among the victims, 15 were members of the law-enforcement agencies, 131 drivers, 89 pedestrians, 53 transport workers, 79 students, nine teachers, 62 women, 67 children, four physicians, four journalists, one freedom-fighter, and 11 political activists. Those killed included two police personnel, two army members, and one navy member.
An analysis of the 829 vehicles, involved in road crashes, showed that motorcycles accounted for 28.46 per cent, followed by trucks, pickups, covered vans and lorries 23.64 per cent, buses 14.35 per cent, and battery-run rickshaws and easy-bikes 13.63 per cent.
Nearly 48.36 per cent of the accidents were caused by vehicles running over pedestrians, 28.62 per cent by head-on collisions, and 16.84 per cent by vehicles losing control and falling into roadside ditches. National highways accounted for 42.57 per cent of the accidents, followed by regional highways at 27.89 per cent, and feeder roads at 24.09 per cent.
BJKS identified policy weaknesses, unregulated vehicles, lack of road signage and dividers, reckless driving and unfit vehicles as major causes behind the accidents. It recommended stronger digitalisation, improved driver training, and formation of an expert taskforce to enhance road safety governance.
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