Place more focus on traffic injuries, says NRSC

  

Vice Chairman of the National Road Safety Council (NRSC), Dr. Lucien Jones, says greater attention must be given to the number of traffic injuries being recorded each year.

 

He notes that the number of fatalities recorded annually are significantly fewer than the number of people injured.

 

His comments come after a Vere Technical High School student died and another was injured during separate crashes earlier this week. There was also a three-vehicle collision in St. Ann on Thursday, in which several people were injured.

 

Dr. Jones says the high number of traffic injuries must be addressed if the country intends to truly prioritise road safety.

 

Data being reviewed by the Ministry of Health shows that in 2022, more than 8,000 people were injured in traffic collisions compared to the 487 who died.

 

Dr. Jones says the focus on deaths does not fully capture the carnage on the roads, adding that if not addressed, this could result in further discord.  

 

"Of the 8,000 people who were injured, 35 per cent of them were in the age cohort, 0 to 20. It means that lots of children are being injured, A, and B, we have to begin to collect all crash data, because if you don't put a stop to what people commonly refer to as fender benders, minor crashes, they will escalate over a period of time into fatal crashes," he said, warning that this could mean more a lot more children dying on the nation's roads. 

 

Up to Friday morning, 272 road fatalities have been recorded since the start of the year.

 

Dr. Jones said 16 of them have been children between 0 to 18 years. 

 

He believes policymakers must prioritise the recommendations from the World Health Organization that Jamaica should exploit all aspects of the safe system's approach to road safety, namely: safe speed, safe roads, road users and vehicles, and an efficient post crash system.

 

He noted that in other parts of the world, where there are built up areas, the speed limit is no more than 30 kilometres. If a vehicle is moving faster than that, the chance of survival for a pedestrian who is hit is significantly decreased, he explained.

 

Dr. Jones was speaking on the Morning Agenda, on Power 106 FM.