Safety audit urgent to reduce vehicular accidents: Police

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

One recent afternoon after heavy downpour in the capital, Yopi, 27, was traveling along the road in Pesing, West Jakarta, on his way to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Cengkareng when his motorcycle hit a deep water-filled pothole.

"I was lucky, thank God, the accident did not do me much harm, I could stand again immediately, I rode the motorcycle again." he recalled.

Motorists in Jakarta have grown accustomed to obstacles caused by careless roadwork, such as potholes.

Hasrul Darmawan, a motorist, said that there was more to worry about than badly repaired roads. Sometimes, he said, the street lights were not bright enough.

Poor infrastructure is one of three factors behind road accidents, besides the condition of the vehicles involved and the individual drivers, said the head of the Jakarta Police Traffic Law Enforcement Division, Comr. Naufal Yahya.

"Therefore, an appraisal of the safety of the city's roads is urgently needed," he said on Tuesday, adding that safety audits conducted in several countries had succeeded in reducing road accidents by 30 percent.

"Currently, the Ministry of Communications is rectifying the current traffic law. I expect that it will keep in mind the necessity of a road-safety audit," Naufal added.

For the first time, the issue of road safety will be highlighted by the United Nations on World Health Day which falls Wednesday. Under the theme "Road safety is no accident", the UN along with the World Bank published a report which details the human and economic costs of road accidents, and sets out guidelines for preventing them.

In his speech, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that nearly 1.2 million people around the globe were killed each year in road accidents, which the media paid little attention to. He said that about 90 percent of road accidents occurred in developing countries.

"Between 20 and 50 million more people are seriously injured in such incidents every year, often resulting in disability ... more than half of the victims are between the ages of 15 and 44. Road traffic injuries cost nations as much as 2 percent of their gross national income," he said.

The Jakarta Police recorded that within the first three months of the year, 196 people were killed in traffic accidents in the city, or over 65 deaths a month.

The rate was alarming compared to an average of 40 road- related deaths for each month of last year and an average of 31 deaths from road accidents monthly in 2002.

City Police Traffic Division chief Sr. Comr. Sulistyo Ishak previously said that road accidents were largely caused by a lack of discipline among motorists and pedestrians. He also said that most of the victims were motorcyclists.

Naufal, who recently obtained his masters degree after studying transportation at Leeds University in Britain, substantiated his superior's comment, saying that the most effective way to amend the lack of road discipline was to educate children.

"We often visit schools to foster traffic rules and safe behavior in young people, but I think this knowledge should be included in the school curriculum." he said

Road accidents from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2004

Accidents 753

Fatalities 196

Seriously injured 399

Slightly injured 299

Material losses Rp 2.1 billion

Road accidents in 2003

Accidents 1,288

Fatalities 482

Seriously injured 660

Sightly injured 601

Material losses Rp 4.29 billion

Source: Jakarta Police