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Improve road safety’ color=” style=’blockquote modern-quote’ custom_font=” size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ custom_class=”][/av_heading]
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THE RECENT Road Safety Summit organized by the Iloilo provincial government pointed out several causes of fatal road accidents. Among these were poor road condition; absence of street lights, road signage and other warning signs.
The government, specifically its Department of Public Works and Highways, should regulate road infrastructures to provide reliable road instructions to motorists and improve road safety in our country. The Philippines is notorious for having one of the worst road conditions in the world. There is a need to put in place regulations that will promote a uniform and consistent standard for the design and installation of road signs, waiting sheds, streetlights, speed bumps and other road infrastructures to promote safety.
According to the World Health Organization, about 7,000 Filipinos die each year, and thousands more are injured due to road mishaps. Out of this number, 79 percent are due to driver’s errors, 11 percent due to defective vehicles, and 10 percent due to bad road conditions and ill-maintained roads.
The latest data from the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) show that death toll due to road mishaps rises by almost 14.6 percent every year. It is projected that by 2020, without any intervention, around 300,000 people will die due to road crashes, the DOTC said.
Our roads have become safety hazards in themselves. The government should step up in securing the well-being of motorists and the riding public by upgrading and regulating the country’s road infrastructures. These have been neglected for so long.
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