The Daily Morning Voice Online Desk: A total of 10,858 people were killed and 12,875 others injured in 7,617 roads, railway and waterway accidents across the country in 2022, said Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Samity, a passengers’ welfare platform, on Monday. Of them, 6,749 road accidents left 9,951 people dead and 12,356 others injured which are the highest figures in the last eight years. Md Mozammel Haque Chowdhury, general secretary of the platform,presented their new report at a press conference in the capital, UNB reports. Deaths in road crashes saw a rise by 27.43 percent in 2022 than that of 2021, it said. In the just-concluded year, 550 people were killed and 201 others injured in 606 railway accidents while 262 accidents on waterways claimed lives of 357 people, and left 318 others injured and 743 more missing.

The report shows that 52.02 percent of the total accidents last year were on regional highways, 27.70 percent on national highways and 11.88 percent on feeder roads. Besides, 5.67 percent of the total accidents in the country occurred in the capital, 1.71 percent in Chattogram city and 0.99 percent in rail crossings. Reckless driving, risky overtaking, dilapidated roads, unfit vehicles, unskilled drivers, using mobile phones or headphones while driving and lack of awareness among road users were cited as main reasons behind road crashes. The platform alleged that the number of road accidents and deaths is increasing due to irregularities, corruption and lack of accountability of the agencies responsible for ensuring road safety. It also stressed the need for modernisation of the traffic system, ensuring fitness of vehicles to keep pace with the developed world.