Road accidents see steep rise

Road traffic accidents increased across 34 districts of Punjab, although reductions were recorded in Lahore (5.85 per cent), Rawalpindi (4.33 per cent), and Faisalabad (1.82 per cent).

The Secretary Emergency Services Punjab chaired the annual operational performance meeting on road traffic accidents, attended by directors, wing heads, the provincial monitoring officer, head of operations, and district emergency officers via video link.

According to Rescue 1122, over 482,000 road traffic accidents were responded to across Punjab in 2025, with timely rescue services provided to more than 569,000 victims.

Dr Rizwan Naseer expressed deep concern over 4,791 fatalities in 2025, noting that 75 per cent of accidents involved motorcycles.

He said road traffic accidents increased by 5.80 per cent in 2025 compared to 2024, while fatalities rose by 19 per cent. In 2023, 420,387 accidents resulted in 3,967 deaths; in 2024, 467,561 accidents caused 4,139 deaths; and in 2025, 482,870 accidents claimed 4,791 lives.

The highest number of accidents were reported in Lahore (88,743), followed by Faisalabad (32,309) and Multan (29,804), while Murree reported the lowest number at 1,889.

Data showed that 75 per cent of accidents involved motorcycles, followed by cars (8.6 per cent), rickshaws (4.7 per cent), buses, trucks and vans (4.3 per cent), and other vehicles (7.4 per cent). Pedestrians accounted for 10.34 per cent of victims.

Dr Rizwan Naseer stressed that road safety is a social responsibility and urged motorcyclists to wear proper helmets, avoid high speeds, and keep speeds below 50 km/h to significantly reduce fatal accidents.