Speeding drivers blamed for fatalities

The Jeddah traffic authority here says reckless motorists driving at high speeds are still causing a number of fatalities on the country's roads.
In the past month, there have been reports of several fatal accidents on the Kingdom’s highways. There were numorous news reports recently about deadly accidents on the Makkah-Madinah, Makkah-Jeddah and Makkah-Taif highways.
A family was recently killed in a tragic road accident in Khamis Mushayt. In another accident, two young men in Jazan died inside their car that had overturned and caught fire.
Speaking to Arab News, Ziad Al-Hamzi, spokesman of Jeddah Traffic Department, said that the accidents were a result of speeding.
Al-Hamzi denied traffic accidents were on the increase. On the contrary, he said that the accident ratio has come down compared to the past.
He said that not all highways are under the jurisdiction of the traffic department. For example, the stretch of road from the airport to the old Jeddah area is the responsibility of the Jeddah Traffic Department. The highways are controlled by the Safety and Security Department.
He said traffic accidents could be avoided by adhering strictly to safety rules.
“Most motorists drive over the speed limits stated on the sign boards posted at critical points on the roads thus putting not only their own lives in danger but also posing a threat to fellow travelers.
While the traffic department is taking a serious view of this matter and has intensified road inspections and speed control patrols on the highways, a number of secret police and undercover officers are also arresting those who breach the law by speeding.”
According to Al-Hamzi, 599 deaths and 3,800 injuries occurred on the Kingdom’s roads in 2012. There are approximately 7,100 fatal accidents every year in which about 38,000 people are seriously wounded and 7 percent permanently disabled. According to the General Directorate of Traffic, the Kingdom has a ratio of 23 deaths per 100,000 members of the population, with an average of 19 road fatalities occurring on a daily basis.
A report published in an online newspaper said that the Saudi Traffic Department has revealed that more than 485,000 traffic accidents occurred during 2008 in the Kingdom killing 6,485 people, an average of 17 people per day.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported recently that road fatalities currently stand at an alarming 1.27 million deaths annually and are on the increase globally. An estimated 50 million are injured or maimed every year.
The WHO noted that if this dangerous trend goes unchecked, road fatalities would hit an estimated 2.4 million deaths annually by 2030.
According to the WHO, road accidents cost governments worldwide an estimated $ 518 billion, placing further stress on already overstretched economic and health care systems in affected countries.