Allianz Lanka raising awareness on unprotected railway crossings

Allianz Lanka recently rolled out the next phase of its life saving initiative at five railway stations - Ahangama, Alawwa, Kaburugamuwa Polgahawela and Weligama.

The insurer has been working on alerting commuters and road users about unprotected railway crossings in partnership with the National Council for Road Safety ( NCRS) since November 2017.

The NRCS notes that the warning signs and safety messaging erected in and around railway stations through this project continue to help avert accidents and save lives. Further, this initiative has been one of the key factors behind the over 50 per cent year on year reduction in deaths at unprotected railway crossings, down from 544 in 2017 to 212 in 2018, the company said in a media statement.

“Having partnered with Allianz Lanka, a company that shares our commitment to road safety, we have been working together on raising awareness on and promoting safety at unmanned railway crossings,” D r. S i s i r a Ko d a g o d a , Chairman, National Council for Road Safety. “We are delighted to note that the warning signs placed in and around railway stations have had a positive impact on commuters and road users. They have been one of the principal reasons behind the drop in the number of deaths at unprotected railway crossings. We will continue to work with partners like Allianz Lanka on continuing to take the message of road safety to all corners of the island.”

Allianz Lanka and NCRS have currently covered 19 railway stations around the island including Aluthgama, Anuradhapura, Higurakgoda, Kalutara South, Kandy, Matara, Moratuwa, Muttetuga l a , Narahenpita, Nav i n n a , Pannipitiya, Payagala South, Ragama, and Wellawa under this project.

Speaking about this initiat ive, Ms. Surekha Alles, Managing Director, Allianz Insurance Lanka Ltd and Allianz Life Insurance Lanka Ltd, said: “As an insurer that is deeply committed to Sri Lanka, we are delighted to have partnered with the National Council for Road Safety to carry out this worthy initiative that will help save the lives of our people. We strongly believe that these tragedies can be avoided if people are made aware of the dangers and are given information on how best they can protect themselves. NCRS’s data on how the warning signs erected under our programme have helped reduce the number of accidents gives us further impetus to scale this project up, taking it to more railway stations around the island.”

Allianz Lanka says it has always been in the forefront of promoting road safety as demonstrated by its initiatives to erect warning signs on key roads leading in and out of Nuwara Eliya, highlighting accident prone zones and other dangers to drivers. The company says it has plans to implement similar projects in the future aimed at safeguarding the lives of the Sri Lankan public.