Bangladesh’s roads: 66 lives lost, 104 people permanently disabled on average every day

Zahidul Alam, from Boalkhali in Chattogram, was working in Oman. He returned to Bangladesh on leave in August 2024. On 4 September, a motorcycle accident left his arms and legs fractured. His jaw was damaged, three teeth were broken, and he sustained a serious head injury.

He received prolonged treatment at Chattogram Medical College Hospital and later at Evercare Hospital Chattogram. Although his life was saved, he could not escape permanent disability.

Zahidul, 28, is now receiving treatment in Bengaluru, India. Speaking to Prothom Alo by phone from Bengaluru last Tuesday, he said he had exhausted all his savings.

He has already spent Tk 6.5 million on treatment and had to borrow money to cover the costs. He has not been able to return abroad and fears he never will. He said he had undergone eight operations on his leg, which had developed gangrene several times.

Like Zahidul, many people injured in road accidents are forced to endure lives of hardship. A large proportion of the injured are young people and working-age adults. The consequences also affect their families.

Another road accident victim is Md Sajib, from Rupganj in Narayanganj. He was involved in a motorcycle accident on the Dhaka–Mawa Expressway in 2021. His left leg was broken, and he sustained injuries to various parts of his body.

He received treatment at Dhaka’s National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (NITOR), commonly known as the Pangu Hospital, for about 33 days and underwent surgery. He still cannot walk normally.

Speaking to Prothom Alo on Tuesday, Sajib said he had worked at a factory before the accident. He was unable to work for nearly three years afterwards. He now runs a tea stall and struggles to make ends meet.

A survey conducted in 2023–24 by the Centre for Injury Prevention and Research, Bangladesh (CIPRB), under the Directorate General of Health Services’ Non-Communicable Disease Control programme, found that more than three million people are injured in road accidents each year.

Of them, around 38,000 suffer permanent disabilities. That amounts to an average of 104 people becoming permanently disabled every day. Road accidents also claim an average of 66 lives daily.

Data collection for the survey, titled National Health and Injury Survey, began in May 2023 and continued until mid-February 2024. A summary report was published in February 2024. The survey covered all 64 districts and analysed information from 442,998 people.

The survey found that road accidents are the leading cause of injury-related deaths in Bangladesh. Among causes of non-fatal injuries, road accidents rank third.

Against this backdrop, National Road Safety Day is being observed in Bangladesh today, 22 October. This year’s theme is “Safe Roads, a Prosperous Country: Bangladesh First”. The main event will not take place today, however; official observances have been rescheduled for 28 October because of the Durga Puja holiday.

Over 3 million people injured on roads every year

According to the National Health and Injury Survey, around 16.574 million people in Bangladesh suffer non-fatal injuries from various causes every year. Of these, 3,031,028 are injured in road accidents.

In other words, road accidents account for about 18.3 per cent of all non-fatal injuries. Every year, approximately 1,835 people per 100,000 population are injured in road accidents.

The survey also highlights the long-term consequences of injuries that leave people permanently disabled. Permanent disability is one of the most serious outcomes of road accidents. According to the findings, around 138,689 people in Bangladesh become permanently disabled each year as a result of different types of injuries.

Of these, 38,028 people suffer permanent disabilities every year because of road accidents—an average of 104 a day. Road accidents account for about 27.4 per cent of all permanent disabilities caused by injuries in the country. For the purposes of the survey, permanent disability included lasting impairment of vision, hearing, hand function, mobility or mental functioning.

In 2021, a head-on collision between a bus and a microbus in Rajshahi caused the microbus to catch fire, killing 17 people. All the passengers in the microbus belonged to the same family. Pavel Mia was the only survivor, losing his parents and other relatives. He was 17 at the time and had just enrolled at Rangpur Police Lines School and College.

Pavel spent three months in intensive care after the accident. He permanently lost two teeth and the thumb of his right hand. His speech remains slurred, and he could not continue his education. Speaking to Prothom Alo, Pavel said he was unable to work and that a government job would help him support himself.

Nearly 85pc of road accident victims killed are men

The survey estimates that around 24,233 people die in road accidents in Bangladesh each year, an average of 66 a day. The annual road accident death rate is 14.67 per 100,000 people. Men account for 84.6 per cent of those killed, while women make up 15.4 per cent.

The survey found that the road accident death rate is higher in urban areas than in rural areas. In cities, the rate is 16.56 deaths per 100,000 people, compared with 13.81 in rural areas.

Salim Mahmud Chowdhury, deputy executive director of CIPRB, told Prothom Alo that most people killed, seriously injured or permanently disabled in road accidents are young. Many are from low-income households and are the main earners in their families.

When they become disabled, they can face severe hardship, placing additional pressure on their families and the state, he added.

Salim Mahmud Chowdhury called for greater emphasis on legislation, enforcement and public awareness to reduce accidents.

Why are there so many accidents?

Various studies and government reports have identified several causes of road accidents, including reckless and excessive speeding, inattention, dangerous overtaking, traffic law violations, drivers’ lack of skills, physical or mental illness, fatigue, driving while drowsy and using mobile phones while driving.

Other risk factors include defective and unfit vehicles, faulty brakes, overloading of passengers and goods, uncontrolled movement of slow-moving vehicles on highways, risky motorcycle use and careless pedestrian behaviour.

Poor road design, dangerous bends, inadequate street lighting, insufficient signs and signals, a lack of safety measures, the absence of road dividers and safe crossing facilities, and inadequate roadside protection also contribute to deaths and serious injuries.

The failure to use helmets, seat belts and child safety equipment, insufficient rest and excessive working hours for drivers, weak traffic management, lax law enforcement, inadequate oversight and institutional capacity at the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), and delays in receiving prompt, quality medical care after an accident further increase the risk of death.

Why are there so many accidents?

Various studies and government reports have identified several causes of road accidents, including reckless and excessive speeding, inattention, dangerous overtaking, traffic law violations, drivers’ lack of skills, physical or mental illness, fatigue, driving while drowsy and using mobile phones while driving.

Other risk factors include defective and unfit vehicles, faulty brakes, overloading of passengers and goods, uncontrolled movement of slow-moving vehicles on highways, risky motorcycle use and careless pedestrian behaviour.

Poor road design, dangerous bends, inadequate street lighting, insufficient signs and signals, a lack of safety measures, the absence of road dividers and safe crossing facilities, and inadequate roadside protection also contribute to deaths and serious injuries.

The failure to use helmets, seat belts and child safety equipment, insufficient rest and excessive working hours for drivers, weak traffic management, lax law enforcement, inadequate oversight and institutional capacity at the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), and delays in receiving prompt, quality medical care after an accident further increase the risk of death.

What is the government doing?

The United Nations has declared 2021–2030 the Decade of Action for Road Safety. Its main goal is to reduce road deaths and injuries worldwide by 50 per cent by 2030. The UN General Assembly adopted the initiative in 2020. A global plan developed under the coordination of the World Health Organization emphasises safer road infrastructure, vehicle safety, speed management, law enforcement and prompt medical care after accidents.

A high-level meeting on road safety was held at UN headquarters in New York on 20 and 21 July. Bangladesh was represented by Road Transport and Bridges Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam.

At the meeting, Shaikh Rabiul Alam outlined Bangladesh’s commitment to improving road safety. He referred to initiatives involving artificial intelligence-based speed control, rapid emergency medical care after accidents and improved pedestrian safety. He also pledged to enact an integrated road safety law by 2027.

Speaking to Prothom Alo yesterday, the minister said the government had adopted a firm position against allowing unroadworthy vehicles on the roads and was working to control vehicle speeds. He expressed hope that road accidents and fatalities could be halved by 2030.

He further said the laws and regulations needed to make roads safer would be introduced by 2027.

The transport sector had been disorderly for a long time, he added, and bringing it under control overnight would be difficult. Some time would be needed.

He also expected the situation to improve considerably once a World Bank-funded project was implemented.

Experts, however, say Bangladesh lacks the specific plan needed to reduce road accidents. The National Road Safety Council is the country’s highest-level forum for preventing road accidents. It met only once during the interim government’s nearly 18-month tenure, and no meeting has yet been held under the current government, despite the requirement for the council to meet every six months.

The BRTA and the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) have road safety divisions or units tasked with addressing road accidents. Their activities, however, remain largely limited to distributing leaflets and organising events on designated days.

The RHD is implementing a World Bank-funded road safety project. Its main objectives are to reduce road deaths and serious injuries and strengthen the capacity of government agencies responsible for road safety management.

The project was approved at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on 18 April 2023. It has a total budget of Tk 49.88 billion and is scheduled to run until June 2028.

Samsul Hoque, a professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) and a transport specialist, told Prothom Alo that the government had yet to adopt a concrete plan to halve road accidents and fatalities.

“Promises alone will not work. No matter how much is said, nothing will change without an innovative, scientific and sustainable plan,” he said.

Samsul Hoque said reducing road accidents required tackling the problems at their roots. Vehicle fitness certification and route permits, as well as the process of issuing drivers’ licences, must be made effective, and monitoring must be strengthened at the field level.

Plans should be developed by analysing data and evidence, he added.