More Road Accidents Due To Faster Cars According to Health Minister

 | Tue 21 Apr 2015 08:24 ICT

CityNews – The Public Health Minister has claimed that traffic accidents are increasing as more people are able to travel due to more convenient and faster transportation.

traffic

In 2013 Thailand ranked third most dangerous in the world for road accidents.

Public Health Minister and acting Permanent-Secretary Dr Surachet Satitniramai told press last weekend that he aims to reduce the death toll to be less than 10 people per 100,000 in 2020.

He plans to increase the number of campaigns across the nation in a bid to help educate people about safe driving, avoiding driving while drunk and wearing helmets.

He claimed that 50 percent of all casualties on bikes with drivers not wearing helmets could have been prevented if they had just worn a helmet.

According to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, Medical and Public Health, 27,821 people were slightly injured, 3,985 people were severely injured and 405 people died during the Songkran festival alone.

This is an 11 percent increase from last year.

39 percent of people injured were under the influence of alcohol and 25 percent of all people found dead were drunk at the time of death.

Most accidents occurred in local areas rather than in long distance transit.

Dr Surachet suggested that during the next Songkran there should be more community checkpoints, set up and managed by local residents who realise and understand the problems and wants to solve them so that the next generation can be safer.