Fatal road accidents

In a tragic accident, almost 41 people have been killed after a passenger coach fell into a ravine and caught fire in Balochistan’s Lasbela region. Investigators were able to ascertain that the accident occurred as a result of speeding and the coach crashed into the pillar of the bridge while taking a U-turn before falling in. Only three people were rescued out of whom one succumbed to injuries on the way to hospital. The rest of the bodies recovered were charred beyond recognition.

Major road accidents are a regular occurrence across the city owing to poor road quality, laxity in safety regulation and reckless driving. According to the Bureau of Statistics, 10,379 road accidents occurred in 2021 resulting in some 5,608 deaths. While such injuries are being increasingly recognised as a growing public health issue in the developing world, Pakistan has failed to acknowledge and mitigate this issue. In order to do so, concrete steps can be taken to strengthen systems and institutions. Firstly, traffic and highway authorities including other relevant LEAs must be empowered and trained so that laws are implemented to the fullest. Secondly, infrastructure such as dilapidated roads and bridges need to be maintained, reconstructed and in some cases redesigned even to prevent horrible accidents from occurring. Moreover, roads leading to hilly areas, such as the Fairy meadow Track, are unsafe as cars can tend to tip over into ravines and valleys. It is about time to develop such infrastructure, especially in the Northern areas where the topography is dangerous. Thirdly, there must be strict regulation on the types of vehicles allowed on roads as ramshackle vehicles don’t just add to carbon footprint but are also a huge safety risk for passengers.

Negligence of reckless drivers and ignorance of officials have caused many unavoidable accidents and loss of lives. Prudent measures taken systematically will help build structures and reduce such incidents in the long run.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 1^st, 2023.

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