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The
Economic Cost of Road Accidents in Bangladesh
By
A M M Shawkat Ali, writing in the Daily
Star
April
18, 2004
It
is said that in a global context about one million persons die out of
road accidents. The poor countries have about 40 percent of world's
motor vehicles but have 86 percent fatalities. In some countries, more
than 10 percent of the hospital beds are occupied by persons injured in
road accidents. In low and middle income countries, the cost of road
traffic injuries is estimated at US$ 65 million, exceeding the total
amount these countries receive in development assistance. Road traffic
injuries cost countries between 1% and 2% of gross national product,
amounting to US$ 518 billion every year.
"Thousands
of people die on the world's road everyday. We are not talking about
random events or 'accidents'. We are talking about road crashes. The
risks can be understood and therefore can be prevented," said Dr.
LEE Jong-wook, Director-General, World Health Organization. "Road
safety is no accident. We have the knowledge to act now. It is a
question of political will", he added.
Statistical
data relating to road accidents
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) in its annual publications
provides data relating to road accidents. The Statistical Year Book
(2000) contains figures from 1987 to 2000. The total number of accidents
during the above period ranged from 1,521 in 1987 to 3,419 in 2000, a
rise of 125 percent. Of these, the casualities in 1987 was 1,156, which
rose by 164 percent in 2000, thus increasing the number to 3,050. The
number injured was 1,988 in 1987, which rose to 2,653, a rise of 33
percent. This is an issue of major concern.
BBS
data referred to earlier do not report number of accidents for the year
1995. The available data covering a period of thirteen years indicate
that the total number of road accidents was 38,464 and the number killed
was 26,363. Thus on an average about 69 percent deaths were reported,
which is less than the global average of 86 percent. This data, however,
has to be accepted with a note of caution. This is because of
inconsistencies in official data. Thus for the year 2000, the annual
report of Bangladesh Police had reported fatal accidents at 3,058 and
not 3,050 as reported in BBS document. Besides, there is always the
problem of underreporting by the police. A survey report by the
Department for International Development (DFID) concluded that "as
few as between 3 and 13 percent of road traffic injuries were being
reported by police" (Aeron-Thomas, 2000). Other recent studies
point out that hospitals are not a good source of data to check the
under-reporting of road deaths. This is because 'families may be
reluctant to take bodies to hospital to avoid any post-mortem
requirement which could postpone burial'. Besides, families may like to
avoid the hastle associated with the process of post-mortem. A recent
study, based on household survey data, concluded that the 'actual number
of road deaths occurring in Bangladesh is at over 8,000 and currently
estimated to be 12,786, which is at least 2.6-4.2 times greater than
that included in official statistics (Transport Research Laboratory, UK,
2003).
xCauses
of road accidents
The causes are not entirely unknown but need to be restated. The major
ones include (1) rapid increase in the number of vehicles, (ii) more
paved roads leading to higher speed, (iii) inconsistent road-use
environment, lack of signs and markings and road surface, (iv)
poor-driving and road use knowledge, skill and awareness, (v) poor
traffic management and enforcement, (vi) lack of appropriate road safety
interventions and (vii) poor medical services.
Rapid
increase in number of vehicles
In 1990, the total number of mechanized vehicles on road was 221,526. In
2000, the number rose to 427,156 in 2000. Thus the number almost
doubled. The compound growth rate works out at about 7 percent. The
types of mechanized vehicles include car, buses, micro-buses, truck,
auto-rickshaw, jeep, taxi, tractor, motor cycle, trawler and others
(BBS, 2000). Of these, the highest growth in percentage was in case of
microbus (2,119%), followed by auto-rickshaw (200%), motor cycle (88%),
car (80%) and truck (55%).
Growth
in paved roads
BBS (2000) data on Roads and Highways Department (RHD) roads covers the
period from 1984 to 2000. The total length in km was 9,387, which rose
to 21,174 in 2000, a growth rate of 125 percent. If the total length of
paved roads under Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) is
added, this would further increase. Available information indicate that
in 2003, the total length in km of LGED roads was 214,932 which is ten
times higher than that of RHD. It is said that road design and safety
standards are often compromised for various reasons which need serious
investigation.
Lack
of signs and markings
Although the above is true to some extent but it is by no means the
whole truth. Even where signs and markings are there, this is hardly
obeyed by the drivers. There is little enforcement.
Poor
driving, road use knowledge and skill and awareness
This is perhaps one of the most important one of all causes. It is not
only a question of poor driving and skill, it is more a question of
reckless driving specially by the buses and trucks. On the highways, the
buses and trucks are seen to be engaged in a deadly competition to
overtake one another by accelerated speed. Much of these can be ascribed
to the mal-practices involved in issuing licenses. There is no rigorous
application of required standards of performance in granting driving
licenses. A Bengali daily (Janakantha, April 4, 2004) has drawn
attention to the fact that about 90 percent of the diving licenses in
Dhaka city are fake.
Poor
traffic management and enforcement
Poor traffic management and enforcement are most visible in the streets
of metropolitan areas. While much of it can be attributed to dereliction
on the part of the traffic police, it is also true that vehicle drivers
as well as pedestrians contribute in no small measure to road accidents.
Most vehicles do not obey traffic signs or wish to be regulated. A vast
majority of pedestrians do not like to use over-bridges or under-passes
built at a huge cost to ensure their safety. Police have given up the
idea of enforcement.
Economic
cost of road accidents
The above study has estimated the national cost of road accidents. The
elements taken into consideration to calculate the costs include
property damage, administration, lost output, medical and human. The
estimated cost is Tk. 38 billion or US$ 644 million. This is said to be
1.5 percent of GDP and three times annual expenditure of the RHD. The
study has claimed that even the above estimate is conservative because
it has not taken into consideration such other factors as (a) number and
cost of permanently disabled, (b) travel time lost to road accidents,
(c) value prevention i.e. how much public would be willing to spend to
reduce risk of road accident.
Economic
impact on the poor
The study (2003) referred to earlier has also drawn attention to the
economic impact on the poor caused by road accidents. It is said that
the heads of households or their spouses are often the fatal victims of
road accidents. This has an adverse economic impact on other members of
the families. It is estimated by the study that about 32 percent of road
deaths occurred to poor heads of households or spouses compared to 21
percent for the non-poor. The study findings indicated that for the 70
percent poor, the household income, food consumption and food production
decreased following road deaths. For the non-poor, the impacts were less
with 54 percent reporting loss of income.
The
coping strategy adopted by the affected families, as analysed in the
study, shows that it is a combination of borrowing and sale of assets
for the poor. Compensation received by affected families is negligible.
One-quarter of the poor families are reported to have received private
compensation compared to 14 percent of the non-poor. Compensation from
institutional sources is said to be virtually non-existent.
From
what has been stated above, it is clear that road safety remains an area
of major concern not only because of the cost to the economy due to an
ever-increasing trend in road accidents, but also the impact on the
poor. It has been argued that road safety rests on three pillar. First,
the engineering interventions. Second, enforcement of laws and
regulations. Third, awareness and education. There is need to address
all these and other related issues with the seriousness that they
deserve.
By
A M M Shawkat Ali, writing in the Daily
Star
A
M M Shawkat Ali is a former Agriculture Secretary.
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