1. DEADLY DRIVING HABITS: ACCIDENTS THIRD CAUSE OF DEATH IN LIBYA
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Ref ID: 09TRIPOLI939
Date: 11/25/2009 14:45
Origin: Embassy Tripoli
Classification: CONFIDENTIAL

2. Destination:
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Tags: PGOV,PREL,ELTN,EAID,SOCI,LY,EINV
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 TRIPOLI 000939 SIPDIS STATE FOR
NEA/MAG E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/25/2019 TAGS: PGOV, PREL, ELTN, EAID, SOCI,
LY, EINV SUBJECT: DEADLY DRIVING HABITS: ACCIDENTS THIRD CAUSE
OF DEATH IN LIBYA TRIPOLI 00000939 001.2 OF 003 CLASSIFIED BY: Gene A.
Cretz, Ambassador, U.S. Embassy Tripoli, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b), (d)
1.(C) Summary: Traffic accidents are the third-leading cause of death in Libya, according
to the World Health Organization. Heavily subsided fuel, readily available cars, poor
road conditions, easily obtained licenses, and drug and alcohol abuse contribute to the
problem. Some attribute Libyans' atrocious driving habits to the stifling political climate,
with limited personal freedoms leading many to drive with little regard for others. While
recent traffic flows in Tripoli appear to be worse than ever, according Taher Mahmoudi,
the head of Libya's Traffic Department, traffic fatalities are leveling off and starting to
decrease due to a multi-pronged strategy by the Libyan government that involves
capacity-building and training of police, educational outreach to students, and
infrastructure upgrades. According to Mahmoudi, the way forward requires a coordinated
effort among police, infrastructure, justice, and education authorities. Private companies,
particularly foreign companies, working in Libya have begun to collaborate with the
Libyan government and with Libyans who have been personally affected by road
tragedies, to encourage local drivers to abide by traffic and public safety laws and to

3. reform their driving habits. U.S. efforts to support this initiative could also have a
positive impact on civic activism. End summary.
NO ONE IS UNTOUCHED BY UNSAFE ROADS IN TRIPOLI
2.(SBU) The combination of unsafe driving habits, poor roads, and relatively high car
ownership make Libya's roads among the most hazardous in the world. Subsidized petrol
costs about 65 cents per gallon, and the government imports thousands of cars every year,
which it provides to regime loyalists and civil servants as job (and loyalty) perks,
resulting in heavy traffic conditions. According to the World Health Organization
(WHO), road traffic injuries are the third-leading cause of death in Libya, following
cardiovascular diseases and cancer.
3.(SBU) The diplomatic community has experienced several tragedies on the road since
foreign embassies and businesses began returning to Libya a few years ago. In 2008, the
Malaysian Charge d'Affaires was killed in an accident on the airport highway. In the past
year, Embassy Tripoli has lost three Libyan colleagues to traffic accidents: two Embassy
guards were killed a year ago while one of them was behind the wheel, en route to his
own wedding. Another guard died while driving home after his shift at the Embassy; he
was hit head-on by a truck. In 2008, a U.S. diplomat was medically evacuated due to a
road accident in which her car was destroyed. The anecdotes do not stop there -- the
fiancee of one local employee was hit head-on while driving her car four years ago. She
has had to travel to France to have several plastic surgery operations to repair her face,
which was unrecognizable after the accident, costing her family thousands of dollars in
medical bills. As a result, her wedding has been postponed indefinitely. Several other
staff members and their families and friends have been injured in traffic accidents.
"SEAT-BELTS ARE TOO UNCOMFORTABLE TO USE"
4.(SBU) Drivers, traffic officials, expatriates and others cite a lack of driver education,
loose enforcement of traffic rules, easy access to drivers' licenses, and poor driving
conditions as factors contributing to the dangerous Libyan road conditions. A study by a
German consulting firm reportedly concluded the problem with traffic in Libya was not
due to the roads, but the result of the unsafe habits of most drivers. Even our own
Embassy drivers adopt different habits when driving for official versus personal
purposes. One Embassy driver, when asked whether he wore a seatbelt while driving his
own car said no, since it was "uncomfortable" and hurt his football-related injuries
(around the abdomen). He said it was fine to not wear a seatbelt when driving inside the

4. city of Tripoli since heavy urban traffic forced driving speeds to be relatively low. [Note:
In May 2009, Libya enacted a seatbelt law mandating use of seatbelts, yet only about one
in ten drivers can be seen wearing seatbelts. End note.] Related hazards included the
almost total lack of use of car-seats for infants and the requirement that children only sit
in the backseats of cars (with seatbelts on). Many parents can be seen holding babies on
their laps while driving, while small children routinely romp between the front and back
seats as their guardians drive at high speeds.
TRAFFIC DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR REPORTS SOME PROGRESS
5.(C) While recent traffic flows in Tripoli appear to be worse than ever, according to the
head of Libya's Traffic Department TRIPOLI 00000939 002.2 OF 003 (under the General
People's Committee for Public Security), Taher Mahmoudi, traffic fatalities are leveling
off and starting to decrease due to a multi-pronged effort by the government. He said
when he started as the head of the department three years ago, the government was
approaching the problem only from a law enforcement perspective. The problem,
however, was multi-faceted, and included driving at excessive speeds, disregard for
seatbelt laws, and the cultural requirement to frequently visit family, even if they live
large distances away. In addition, the rates of car ownership are very high. According to
Mahmoudi, the government recently adopted a strategy to target traffic safety, which he
described as based on the "four E's" of Engineering, Emergency Services, Education and
Environment. In Mahmoudi's view, Libya needs a "pragmatic approach" to traffic safety,
led by a "decision-maker" within society. Mahmoudi identified the related problem of
lack of coordination among police, the courts, licensing and inspection authorities, and
educational bodies as an area that also needed to be addressed.
6.(C) Mahmoudi noted that Libya has 30,000 kilometers of roads, but that the state did
not differentiate how many of those were "safe" roads. Working with companies, such as
Shell, his office has directed resources from Libya's Roads and Bridges Authority to
upgrade particularly dangerous stretches of road around the country. Mahmoudi credits
himself with the early 2009 addition of clearly visible road signs in Tripoli, including
along the heavily traveled "Second Ring Road." According to Mahmoudi, prior to his
efforts, over 20 miles of the city's main highway were completely devoid of signage and
exit markers. While the signs are currently only written in Arabic (he was refused
permission to include English), many of the signs do include pictograms (such as an
airplane indicating the airport) and/or internationally-recognized symbols indicating
speed limits and non-parking zones. The roads in eastern Libya are especially hazardous
due to dangerous passing habits on two-lane highways. Other country-wide problems
include: driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol (despite an alcohol ban in this
Muslim country), pedestrians wandering into traffic, talking or texting on cell phones

5. while driving, corrupt practices in issuing licenses, and the lack of a car inspection
regime. Mahmoudi said poor tire quality was also a serious issue, since many people used
"cheap, poor-quality, Chinese tires" on their vehicles. In a year and a half, Libya will
begin a program to inspect vehicles, which, if implemented, would be an important step
towards keeping old, unsafe cars off the roads. Mahmoudi said that a new system for
producing professional-quality drivers' licenses (along with mandatory testing) will also
be developed. [Note: At present, the Libyan driver's license is a hand-written, laminated
card with no picture, which is easily forged. One can reportedly pay a US 50 dollar bribe
to a DMV-equivalent office clerk in exchange for a license. End note.]
7.(C) Mahmoudi said he was puzzled as to why "seemingly normal people" would
become totally different once behind the wheel. He said many people in Libya exhibited
"criminal behavior" as soon as they got into their cars. He consulted a psychologist to try
to gain insight into this phenomenon; however, he still has not reached any conclusions.
Mahmoudi believes the change in mindset vis-a-vis driving safety will be generational.
Thus, he has launched an outreach program to educate secondary school students about
road safety. He said the students report going home to their parents to discuss issues such
as the need to wear seatbelts and other safety measures after interventions at their
schools.
FOREIGN PRIVATE SECTOR CONCERNED
8.(SBU) Most international companies have strict policies when it comes to driving,
either not allowing their expatriate staff to drive in Libya at all, or only allowing them to
drive after completing a road safety course. The American construction firm, AECOM,
decided to avoid any potential injuries to expatriate staff (or liability issues if they were
to hit someone) by refusing to allow any expatriate staff to drive. Instead, transportation
is provided to/from home to work and for other needs. Many oil companies have similar
policies and provide cars with drivers to their staff. A few companies allow expatriates to
drive, but only after taking a rigorous driver-safety courses. To monitor locally-hired
drivers, many companies have outfitted vehicles with USB devices that track speed,
breaking patterns, and other factors for each shift; this information is then downloaded
and analyzed. The U.S. oil company Amerada Hess has witnessed a dramatic decrease in
the TRIPOLI 00000939 003.2 OF 003 number of dents in its motorpool fleet since the
company adopted the USB system. The oil services company, Schlumberger, has a
particularly aggressive road safety strategy and employs an accident simulator called "the
Convincer" that has participants experience what would happen to a baby (in this case a
greased watermelon) in the event of a collision. Shell has taken its program a step further
to educate not only its own staff but also the general public about road safety. They have

6. also teamed up with Mahmoudi's department to improve treacherous roads in and around
the areas where they are working in eastern Libya.
9.(C) Comment: A daily topic of discussion among expatriates and Libyans alike is the
appalling manner in which most people here drive. One theory is that Libyans enjoy so
few personal freedoms that driving their own cars with little regard for other drivers is
something the regime permits as a sort of pressure valve. Most people shun the use of
seatbelts, which they deem too constricting and uncomfortable. In a country with no
discotheques, theaters, bars, and only one small shopping mall, young people have
nowhere to go and nothing to do other than drive around in their parents' cars. As
articulated by the head of Libya's traffic office, traffic safety will only be improved
through a coordinated effort among various Libyan authorities, including the police and
infrastructure, justice, and education ministries. Opportunities to work with private
companies exist, particularly with foreign companies, who recognize the need to protect
their most precious assets (their people) and also to involve average Libyans who have
been touched by road tragedies. Organizations including the Red Crescent Society, the
Scouts and youth groups can also be involved in making roads safer. By working
together, government, civil society, and the private sector can effect a gradual change in
attitudes and behavior among Libyan drivers. In the process, these programs can also
have a positive impact on civic activism. Post aims to engage these actors to tackle the
third highest killer of Libyans using Economic Support Funds and other resources that
may become available. End comment. CRETZ