ILOILO – The Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) recorded a total of 1,082 road crashes across the province from January 1 to March 24, with 42 fatalities and hundreds more injured.
Of the total cases, 674 resulted in property damage, 366 in injuries, and 42 in deaths. Motorcycles were the most commonly involved vehicles, accounting for the highest number of casualties.
Authorities attributed the crashes mainly to reckless driving, citing unsafe overtaking and failure to observe road precautions as frequent violations.
Other contributing factors included overspeeding, heavy traffic, drunk driving, mechanical defects, poor road conditions, and inadequate road lighting.
In response, the IPPO has intensified the enforcement of traffic regulations and expanded its coordination with the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and the Highway Patrol Group (HPG).
It has also increased road safety campaigns, particularly targeting young drivers through programs in partnership with the Department of Education.
Alarmed by the rising number of road crashes — some involving underage drivers — Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. has issued a call to action: obey traffic rules and keep minors off the road.
“You follow the traffic rules. That’s the problem here — we have too many vehicles, too many drivers who don’t know or ignore the rules. The road isn’t going anywhere; we must be the ones to adjust,” Defensor stressed.
In 2024 from January to October alone, the Iloilo Provincial Police Office (IPPO) recorded 3,011 vehicular accidents, leading to 123 deaths and 1,226 injuries.
Reckless driving topped the causes with 2,230 cases, followed by driver error (683), drunk driving (78), and mechanical failure (20).
The governor also raised concern over children and teenagers illegally operating motorcycles and tricycles, especially along highways.
“Parents should not allow their kids to drive, especially without a license. It’s not just illegal — it’s deadly,” he warned.
Road safety became such a concern such that the provincial government last year held a “Road Safety Summit” spearheaded by the Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) with key transport stakeholders, including the LTO) and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB)
Provincial Administrator Raul Banias pointed out that road crashes in Iloilo cause five times more deaths than dengue — but receive far less urgency.
He noted as Iloilo progresses and modernizes, its roads become wider and better paved. Yet, with this progress comes a troubling increase in the volume of vehicles — two-wheeled, three-wheeled, and four-wheeled alike. Reckless driving has become an all-too-common occurrence, leading to accidents that claim lives and shatter families./PN