Federal Road Safety Corps, says fatality on the nation’s highways reduced by 18.6 per cent in 2018, according to its end-of-year special patrol report.

According to the Corps, the special patrol, tagged: “Operation Zero Tolerance for Road Traffic Crashes,” took place between Dec. 20, 2018 and Jan. 15, 2019.

Its Corps Public Education Officer, Bisi Kazeem, said the number of people, who died in road mishaps, during the period, dropped from 338 in 2017 to 275 in 2018, saying the figure showed a difference of 63, representing 18.6 per cent.

Kazeem said 2018 exercise came with different innovations, including the establishment of additional help areas and deployment of more personnel and logistics.

Others, he said, included the creation of alternative routes for motorists and greater coverage of crash-prone corridors across the country by the organisation.

Kazeem said the 2018 report showed obvious improvement in certain areas over that of 2017.
“For instance, while a total of 540 crashes were recorded in 2017 as against 542 in 2018, the number of people involved reduced from 4, 418 in 2017 to 4, 375 in 2018.
“This shows a difference of 43, representing one per cent reduction.
“The number of people rescued without injury within the period in 2018 was 2,136 as against 2,041 in 2017.
“This also shows an increase of 95, representing 4.6 per cent,” he said.

Kazeem said the report further showed that 1,964 people were injured in 2018 as against 2,040 recorded in 2017, which was a difference of 376, representing 18.6 per cent reduction.

He said the most frequent offences recorded during the patrol included seatbelt and tyre violations, riding motorcycle without helmets and Speed Limit Devices violation.

Kazeem expressed concern that the report showed an increase in the number of children killed in road accidents during the period.

He said, “This has made it imperative for FRSC to put necessary measures in place to curb the phenomenon, saying part of the measures would be for the organisation to organise a national summit on child safety.

The statement conveyed the appreciation of the Corps Marshal, to the relevant stakeholders for their support to the organisation during the special patrol.

He urged the people to remain committed to the corps’ goal of attaining safer road environment in the country.

The special patrol is an annual end-of-year exercise initiated by the organisation to tackle some of the challenges on the road, including obstruction and gridlocks, usually experienced every Yuletide.