Causes behind road crashes

Collateral casualties of big and joyous festivals have become routine in this country. Network of road communication with the addition of six-lane highways has not only expanded but also improved in most places. This has its reflection on comparably smoother journeys home during the Eid vacation this time. But the advantage has been terribly undermined by tragic road accidents and a bizarre incident at Sadarghat launch terminal. According to reports carried in newspapers, both the number of road accidents and casualties between April 4 and April 14, the time of celebrations of two great festivals, 189 people were killed and 278 left injured. As many as 17 lives lost every day on an average during the 11 days. What is most concerning is the higher incidence of road crashes and casualties this year compared to the same period last year when 161 such accidents claimed 153 lives and left 267 people injured. Although, no launch disaster was reported during this time, the launch terminal mishap accounted for five lives--- three of them from a family.

Now the intriguing issue here is the discord between improved roads and rise in accidents. Even improvement in ticketing and somewhat regulated arrival and departure of buses on long routes could not lower the high incidence of road crashes and casualties. What went amiss? The Faridpur accident between a bus and mini-truck, which occurred on Tuesday last, killing 15 people and injuring 15 others provides a classic example of such tragic inevitability due to gross violation of law and a lack of traffic management. This has now become almost routine that after almost all road crashes, the authorities concerned come up with the revelation that either the vehicle was unregistered or had no fitness certificate or the driver had no licence or if he had, it was not renewed and the list goes on. In this case, initial reports indicate that a pothole on the road caused the passenger bus, which also had no route permit, to veer sideways across the road. The mini-track that hit it was carrying passengers in violation of the law and all the dead were its passengers. Yesterday's accident at Gabkhan toll plaza in Jhalakathi with a toll of 14 lives and injury to 25 others gives the impression of inept driving. An ominous prospect of more road tragedies looms.

It is common knowledge that during festival times, old and rickety buses are pressed into service after applying a fresh coat of paints on them. Granted that the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) and the highway police have not adequate manpower to check all such buses but what about the mini-truck that was carrying passengers on the highway? There is no reason why the highway police would fail to notice this. If they and the BRTA turn a blind eye to violation of legal provisions, roads and highways, much as they may be improved, cannot guarantee fewer road crashes.

True, not all accidents are preventable. But if the roads and highways are developed and managed better with strict enforcement of legal provisions both at offices and on roads, the man-made accidents can be prevented. Enforcement of laws can see off unfit and dilapidated vehicles. Several times did the authorities promise to send such vehicles to junkyards and then backtracked for political considerations. The problem lies there and unless the authorities demonstrate enough resolve to do away with all the known malaises in the system, roads and highways will continue to witness such fatal accidents.