Gov’t to reduce road fatalities by 2030

—National Road Safety Month 2024 launched

The government has set a significant target to reduce road fatalities to just 53 deaths per year by 2030, aiming to enhance road safety in Guyana.

This was according to Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn during the launch of National Road Safety Month on Monday in Region Three, under the theme ‘Do the Right Thing.’

Minister Benn stressed that achieving this target will require substantial effort and collaboration.

“We should only see 53 deaths per year on the roads by 2030. We have six years more to get to that number, there is a lot of work ahead to achieve this, we cannot do this alone…it relies on a change in culture, change in behaviour, greater levels of awareness amongst the population,” he stated.

While road fatalities remained below 100 in 2021 and 2022, 2023 saw a sharp increase, with 178 lives lost.

Minister Benn attributed many of these fatalities to factors such as speeding, distracted driving, driving under the influence, and motorcycle users riding without helmets.

He also outlined the government’s commitment to intensifying efforts to curb these numbers, adding to the existing measures in place.

Providing a global perspective, Earl Lambert from the National Road Safety Council highlighted that road traffic accidents claim approximately 1.19 million lives annually worldwide.

He noted that road traffic injuries are one of the leading causes of death for young people aged 5 to 34. Furthermore, Lambert pointed out the economic toll of road accidents, which cost countries about 3 per cent of their annual GDP.

From 2014 to November 2, 2024, Guyana has seen 1,212 fatal accidents, resulting in 1,370 deaths. Of this number, 83 per cent of fatalities were male, and 17 per cent were female.

The most vulnerable age group is between 25 and 42 years, which accounts for the highest number of fatalities.

Motorcyclists and pedestrians were the most frequently involved in fatal accidents, with motorcycles contributing to 32 per cent of fatal accidents and private cars to 35 per cent.

Speeding remains the leading cause of road fatalities, accounting for 70 per cent of the deaths. The data also shows that the majority of fatal accidents occur over extended weekends, from Friday to Monday, with a peak time between 6:01 PM and midnight.

However, there has been slight improvement in 2024, as of November 2, the number of fatalities declined by 30 per cent, from 135 in 2023 to 102 in 2024.

Male fatalities decreased by 25 per cent, and there was a 49 per cent drop in fatalities within the 25-42 age category.

Motorcycle-related deaths decreased by 15 per cent, and pedestrian fatalities fell by 30 per cent.

Meanwhile, presentations were also made by Health Officer and the Deputy Traffic Chief on Behalf of Mahendra Singh, reinforcing the need for continued road safety initiatives across the country.