Road accidents are the new ‘epidemic’ sweeping across much of the developing world. For Bangladesh too with its rapid urbanization and exponential growth of transport networks, safety on the roads has emerged as an inescapable priority. BRAC with a strong record of engagement on the issue commissioned Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC) to undertake a causal study on road safety to inform an appropriate advocacy strategy on this crucial national concern.

1. Road Safety in Bangladesh
Realities and Challenges
Hossain Zillur Rahman
Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC)

2. Why is road safety a major concern?
• A new epidemic:
1.24 million annual deaths / 20-50 million non-fatal injuries
• Consequences both humanitarian and economic
1-2% of GDP, 100 billion USD annual loss
• Road fatalities are not inevitable
88 countries saw a drop while 87 saw a rise
• Urgency of prioritizing
5 million lives can be saved annually through road safety measures

3. Research strategy
• Scope
• Assess magnitude of problem
• Identify causal factors
• Institutional landscape
• Action priorities
• Multi-disciplinary research team of experts and
practitioners
• Research strategy
• In-depth analysis of official statistics
• Review of international experiences
• In-depth consultations with key stakeholders
• Survey of drivers
• Field research on four highway spots: Dhaka-Aricha, Dhaka-Tangail

4. Vehicles and Roads
Registered vehicles (2010)
Total 1624862
Cars/4-wheeled light vehicles 529215
Motorized 2/3 wheelers 975682
Heavy trucks 81561
Buses 38101
Source: Global Status Report on Road Safety,
2013
Length of road network, 2012
Total length 21365 km
National highways 3580 km
Regional highways 4276 km
Zila & upazila roads 13509 km
Source: Statistical yearbook, 2012

5. Magnitude of problem
• Annual deaths
3137 (official statistics: average for 2002-2012)
5162 (2013: Nirapad sarak Chai; includes deaths en route and after release)
• Fatality index (official statistics):
- 20 deaths annually for each 10,000 vehicles (2011)
- Decline from 75 deaths per 10,000 vehicles in 2000
• WHO: for each fatality, 20 non-fatal injuries
• 3 Problems with data
- Under-reporting
- Non-fatal accidents ignored
- No data on victim profile

6. Where do accidents occur?
• Accident-prone districts
Dhaka, Chittagong, Comilla, Tangail, Sirajganj
• 208 accident black spots (RHD list)
• Accident-prone highway length: 57 km
• Most accidents in congestion spots and inter-
sections rather than isolated stretches

7. Accident-prone highway length
1.6
2.2
2.6
5.1
5.8
6.4
7.9
8.8
16.5
0 3 6 9 12 15 18
N3 Dhaka -Mymensingh
N405 Bangabandhu Shetu (Jamuna Bridge) approach road
N4 Gazipur-Tangail-Jamalpur
N2 Dhaka-Sylhet
N8 Daulatdia-Jhenaidah-Khulna
N7 Nagarbari-Rajshahi
N6 Nagarbari-Banglabandh
N5 Dhaka-Aricha
N1 Dhaka-Chittagong
Highway
Accident-prone length (km)

8. Classification of Accident spots
Bus stand, 40.90%
Road inter-sections,
17.80%
Bazar, 28.40%
Others, 13.00%

9. Victims and perpetrators
Victims Accident types Perpetrators
Pedestrians 41% Hit-and-run 42% Bus 38%
Bus/car
passengers
19% Head-on
collision
19% Truck 31%
2/3 wheelers
riders/passenger
s
16% Over-turned 13% Motor-cycles 12%
Truck/bus
drivers/passeng
er
14% Rear-end hit 9% Cars/jeeps 11%
Cyclists 3% Side swipe 6% 3 wheelers 9%

10. Post-accident needs
Short-term/immediate Long-term
Need Ideal provider Need Ideal provider
• First aid Local people, vehicle
staff, nearby medical
centre, adjoining local
govt reps
• Compensation Courts, insurance
companies
• Transportatio
n
Local people, nearby
medical centre, police,
• Long-term
treatment
Family, government
• Protect
people &
vehicles
Police, local leaders • Assistive devices Family, community,
insurance companies
• Compensatio
n for victim
Vehicle owners, Insurance
companies
• IG skills for
disabled
NGOs, social
entrepreneurs
• Employment for
alternative family
member
Government,
community

11. Reality check on post-crash facilities
Post-crash care Availability
• Emergency room based injury surveillance system No
• Emergency access telephone number No
• Seriously injured transported by ambulance <10%
• Permanently disabled due to lack of facilities 13%
• Emergency training for doctors No
• Emergency training for nurses No
• Trauma centres Severely inadequate

12. Driver profiles
Variable Finding
Age 24-35 years: 47%
36-50 years: 48%
Education 48% secondary or equivalent
Only 8% wholly illiterate
Earner 70% single earner families
22% two earner families
Housing 41% rural residence/sleep in vehicles
33% rented house
21% in dormitories (‘mess’)
Monthly income 47% - Tk 15-20 thousand
19% - Tk. 10-15 thousand
16% - Tk. 20-25 thousand
15% - Tk. 26-50 thousand
Nature of income Trip-based; only 9% have fixed monthly
income

13. Driver characteristics
Characteristic Finding
License • 97% report having license
• 20% report obtaining license without test
• 92% pay bribe and 54% face severe time delays in obtaining
license
Trade union • 80% are unionised
Training • 81% learnt driving skills through informal process usually with a
‘mentor’ (ustad)
• Learning hours with ustad 1500
• Commercial learning hours is 93
Cost of training • Informal process: approx Tk. 4000
• Formal process: approx Tk 6000
Confidence on learning • 70% fully confident
Work-load • About 20% extremely over-worked with 6-7 days weekly and 13-
16 hours daily
Accident penalty • 42% faced no penalty in case of accidents
• 58% of incurred accidents minor in nature

14. 9 Causes of accidents
• Reckless driving
• Untrained drivers
• Unfit vehicles
• Simultaneous operation of motorized and non-motorized
vehicles without separation and adequate rules
• Vulnerable road-side activities
• Faulty road design
• Poor traffic enforcement
• Lack of road safety awareness and risky pedestrian behavior
• Culture of impunity and poor legal redress

15. Additional causes highlighted in field research
• Mental, physical and financial pressures on drivers
• General lack of road safety awareness
• Absence of supplementary facilities on roads – hard
shoulder, bus bays, helpful signal & markings, access roads
• Failure to productively reconcile local economic growth
needs with road safety needs

16. Laws and Institutions
• MVO 1983 is updated version of 1913 law
• Major new initiative on new law –
RTTA, 2011 but yet to materialize
• Institutions
BRTA, Metropolitan, district and highway police, RTC, ARI, RHD,
LGED

17. Perceptions on recent progress and setbacks
Perceptions on progress
Perception % of response
----------------------------------------------
New roads built and 84%
others repaired
----------------------------------------------------
Road dividers/introduction 34%
of 1-way system
----------------------------------------------------
Building of fly-overs 32%
& over-bridges
----------------------------------------------------
Increase in number of 21%
highway police
---------------------------------------------------
Some road curves have been 20%
straightened
Perceptions on setbacks
Perceptions % of response
------------------------------------------------
Increased extortion on 62%
highways by police/
ruling party activists
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Increased traffic of unlicensed 43%
informal transports
(nasimon/karimon/easy bikes)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Proliferation of road-side markets 39%
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Improper and irregular road 21%
repair and maintenance
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Illegal truck stands & parking 20%
on highway
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Proliferation of unfit vehicles on the roads 11%
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lack of pedestrian awareness 8%

18. 6 findings that matter
Incidents concentrated in accident spots
Congestion spots and intersections main location of accidents
Pedestrians and vulnerable road-users main victims
Multiple causal factors necessitate holistic safety agenda
Significant gaps in law and policy
Political economy factors major impediment to success on
safety agenda

19. 10 recommendations
• National dialogue on RTTA 2011 for early passage of an appropriately
updated road traffic law
• Regular updating of the list of accident black spots and priority action
plan on black spot improvement
• Improved road engineering solutions with priority attention to
geometric standard, intersection design, grade separation, access
control on highways, pedestrian facilities, regular maintenance and
adoption of road safety audit approach
• Introduction of an independent economic code for road safety
projects in the budgetary process and mobilization of funds including
donor assistance for such projects
• Comprehensive study on optimal resolution of road-building and
road-side economic activities

20. Recommendations contd.
• Promotion of quality driving training schools
• Scaling up a national road safety awareness program in partnership
with civic platforms and NGOs active on the agenda. Such a
program is to be targeted to drivers, vulnerable road-users and
school children
• Establishment of a National Traffic Training Academy along with a
comprehensive review of current approach to traffic management by
police
• Promotion of effective community policing solutions to irrational
traffic congestion and safe use of roads
• Improving trauma facilities with priority attention to capacity building
on emergency and critical care, institution of a universal emergency
access number and affordable provision of assistive devices

21. 4 advocacy priorities
 Social communication targeted to drivers and vulnerable road users
 Awareness program targeted to school children
 Focused workshops with administrative departments – RHD, LGED,
Ministry of Communication, Ministry of Health and local government
bodies aimed at making such bodies more pro-active in realization of their
road safety plans
 Policy advocacy on updated road transport and traffic legislation