KUCHING: A total of 378 deaths involving motorcyclists were recorded in Sarawak in 2010 which is equivalent to a death each day, costing the state a staggering RM1.2 million in losses per fatal accident.
“People just do not realise the seriousness of road safety if they just look at the statistics alone. This is the problem,” said Road Safety Department (RSD) state director Rano Aylwino Akat when met at his office yesterday.
A single digit figure seemed so petty and would not ring the alarm bell or had any impact on road users, especially motorcyclists, to cause them to change their attitude, he added.
Motorcyclists and their pillion riders, Rano said, were categorised in the highest risk group and likely to result in death or serious injury in road accidents because they had little protection.
Losses of human lives aside, Rano said road accidents also caused the state to lose billions of ringgit each year.
“Based on calculations by World Health Organisation (WHO), one death is equivalent to RM1.2 million.
“The cost is measured in socio-economic values, which included life and vehicle insurance claims, loss in manpower as well as maintenance and repair on damaged infrastructure.
“For instance, many beds in the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) are occupied by victims of road accidents. Isn’t it better if the beds are used by people who are ill especially those from rural areas,” he said.
Rano thus urged road users, especially motorcyclists, to take the necessary precautions and used Sirim-certified helmets as well as proper riding attire to prevent serious accidents if accident could not be curbed all together.
The government, he added, had allocated huge allocation for education purposes to impart knowledge on road safety and inculcate good riding habit among the people even from a young age.
“Our department alone spends about RM1 billion annually on road awareness campaigns and education programmes to promote road safety,” he said.
The department, he added, had introduced the road safety module in primary schools since 2007 apart from ongoing campaigns to remind road users of their roles and responsibilities.
“We will introduce the module to secondary schools starting with Form 1 this year. Also, we have held several meetings with higher institutes of learning with the view to include the course in their programmes for first year students,” he said.
The department is also partnering with corporate bodies like Petronas and Shell in carrying out activities that promote safety riding skills and attitude among the younger generation.
“So much effort has been put into educating road users and we will continue to promote road safety. It takes practice to nurture good habits.
“After all, it goes down to us as a responsible citizen that safety should always be top of our priorities,” he said.