Deaths a daily affair on Jakarta roads

JAKARTA (JP): An average of two persons were killed in road accidents on the city's streets every day last month, according to the police.

Data that the police released yesterday shows that a total of 52 people lost their lives in 116 traffic accidents recorded last month.

The figure is higher than that recorded in April, when 40 people were killed in 106 recorded road accidents.

In the past two years, an average of one person died in traffic accidents in Jakarta every day. Last year, a total of 492 people were killed in 1,407 accidents, according to statistics.

The data, revised monthly, also shows a significant increase in the number of road casualties with serious injuries, from 76 in April to 93 people in May, and slight injuries, from 36 to 69 people.

Traffic accidents on toll roads also rose last month. The number of fatalities rose to 26 from 18 in April, serious injuries increased to 104 from 50, and slight injuries to 156 from 140.

Traffic police also found that most of the traffic violators in the city were drivers aged between 22 and 30 years.

On the national level, about 12 people were killed in traffic accidents in the first two weeks of this month.

Fatalities

"The figures are really saddening. Pileups claimed most of the fatalities and injuries," National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. I Ketut Ratta told reporters yesterday.

According to the data, the total number of traffic accidents that occurred throughout the country rose to 220 during this month's first two weeks compared to 166 recorded in the same period in May.

Police also counted a total of 31,053 cases of traffic violations nationwide in this month's first two weeks, compared to 27,967 cases in the same period last month.

Victims in the traffic accidents with serious injuries totaled 153 in the first two weeks of this month, higher than the 94 people recorded in the first two weeks of May.

The number of victims with slight wounds almost doubled to 141 people from 72 of the same period.

"Most of the accidents were caused by careless driving," Ratta said. (bsr)