Drop in road deaths shows campaign effective — Bobbey
SANDAKAN: Road safety campaigns prove effective as death rates caused by road accidents showed a decline for three consecutive years (2015 - 2017).
Assistant Minister of Infrastructure Development cum deputy chairman of the Road Safety Department, Datuk Bobbey Ahfang Suan said he hoped the decline in death rates would remain until the end of the Chinese New Year Celebration.
“This shows that the awareness programs implemented have been successful. Therefore, we hope that the serious injuries and fatality due to road accidents can continue to be minimized through good attitude of road users.
“We will able to reduce the rate of injuries and deaths in Sabah up to 50 per cent by the year of 2020, ”he said.
Based on the Road Safety Book Statistics, in 2015, 392 deaths were due to road accidents, the death rate dropped to 379 in 2016, and it further dropped to 351 in 2017, he said to reporters after launching the state-level Road Safety Campaign at Mile 4, Sandakan yesterday in conjunction with the upcoming Chinese New Year celebration.
The campaign was held in collaboration with the Road Safety Department, Allianz General Insurance Company (Malaysia) Berhad, Road Safety Council Sabah, Royal Malaysia Police, Road Transport Department, Sandakan Municipal Council, Puspakom Sandakan and Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board.
Among the main objectives of the campaign were to urge motorists to focus on planning and preparation before starting a long journey, especially the good condition of the vehicle and driver’s health.
“Moreover, through this Road Safety Campaign, enforcement will be able to disseminate the message to road users to be more vigilant thus obey all road rules,” said Bobbey, adding that the campaign held yesterday was a continuation of the #SaveLives and #PalanPalanBah Campaign.