Unique road safety plan for Batu Pahat

PUTRAJAYA: The Transport Ministry will finalise a unique road safety plan for Batu Pahat by end of the year to deal with the high incidence of road accidents in the district.

Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Aziz Kaprawi said agencies under the ministry are devising a “micro integrated approach” for the area.

“We will localise a federal approach by engaging the stakeholders at district level,” he told theSun.

Aziz said it could either be a stand-alone mode, new road safety plan or a unique plan that no other districts have.

Last month, a two-day workshop was held in Batu Pahat for 25 participants from Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research, Road Safety Department, Road Transport Department, Public Works Department, police and university researchers.

Road Safety National Blue Ocean Strategy cluster chairman Prof Ahmad Farhan Mohd Sadullah said it may adopt the experience from other parliamentary constituencies nationwide as part of the plan while analysing the motorists behaviour in Batu Pahat.

He said the new road safety model may be extended to other states.

On Monday, theSun reported that Batu Pahat had the dubious honour of being the deadliest district, with the highest road fatalities for two years in a row.

Last year, the district claimed 191 lives as compared to the 165 fatalities in the previous year. Motorcyclists and pillion riders were the highest victims with 63%.

Last year, there were 7,698 traffic collisions recorded in Batu Pahat with 54 suffering serious and 293 minor injuries as compared to 7,445 road crashes in 2014 leading to 47 afflicted with severe and 547 minor injuries.