Scramble for space on roads leading to accidents: Experts

Kathmandu, Mar. 20: Inadequate road safety funding and lack of engagement of the major stakeholders in policy making has contributed to the rise in road accidents, experts said.

Former Vice-President of the National Planning Commission (NPC) Dr. Jagadish Chandra Pokharel said that the exclusion of primary stakeholders – passengers/users, drivers and investors – from policy engagement was one of the major causes for the soaring cases of road accidents.

"The government and other concerned authorities rarely consult with these groups. It is necessary to understand their concerns to make road safety policy effective," he said while speaking at a 3-day Road Safety Capacity Building Workshop that started on Tuesday in Lalitpur.

According to him, competition for space in the road has also created risks.

Chief of Road Safety Project at the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport (MoPIT) Engineer Saroj Pradhan said that inadequate road safety funding coupled with poor monitoring and evaluation system was the major cause of surging road accidents in the country.

According to the statistics of Traffic Police, almost eight people lose their life in road accidents every day in Nepal. Rough estimates show that the country loses about Rs. 30 to 90 billion every year due to the road accidents.

Pradhan said that the number of fatalities in road mishaps had been continuously increasing. There were about 837 fatalities in 2007 which increased to 2,386 in 2018.

"Nepal is witnessing 10 times higher fatalities as compared to its regional neighbours," he said.

He also pointed towards the lack of sustained commitment and understanding on implications of the road accidents from political and top bureaucratic levels as well as poor implementation of law.

Ishtiaque Ahmed, expert from the Transport Division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), said that Nepal was prone to fatal road mishaps due to its difficult geographical setting.

"Same traffic condition in Bangladesh or in the Terai of Nepal will not be dangerous as in the hills and mountains," he said.

He suggested for early adoption of the 3-star International Road Assessment Programme (IRAP) and Asian Roads Standards to promote road safety.

Although the government has implemented Road Safety Action Plan since 2013, there are no signs of improvement.

According to recent studies, about 72 per cent accidents happen due to the negligence on the part of the drivers while over-speeding is the second biggest cause.

Similarly, drunk driving has 2 per cent share in road mishaps while overtaking, vehicle problem, pedestrians and poor road condition have 1 per cent share each. About 4 per cent accidents happen due to other reasons.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 21 March 2019.