Thailand: Accident fatalities drop during New Year holiday
A total of 373 people died in 3,421 traffic accidents on roads in Thailand during the New Year holiday from December 22, 2019 to January 2, 2020, down 19.4 percent the same period last year.
Heavy traffic is seen in Nang Rong district of Buri Ram province as New Year revellers start to return to Bangkok. (Photo: Bangkok Post)
Bangkok (VNA) – Atotal of 373 people died in 3,421 traffic accidents on roads in Thailand duringthe New Year holiday from December 22, 2019 to January 2, 2020, down 19.4 percentthe same period last year.
This is the lowest death toll forthe period over the past five years. The capital city of Bangkok had thehighest New Year death toll with 15.
Drink driving and speeding arethe two major causes of road accidents.
Deputy Interior Minister Niphon Bunyamanee saiddecreases were seen in both the number of road accidents and fatalities as wellas in the number of injuries.
PrimeMinister Prayut Chan-o-cha said he was not satisfied with the decreases becausethe death toll remained high. He urged relevant agencies to seek measures tofurther reduce the number of persons killed in traffic accidents during theSongkran festival in April this year.
Thailandhas one of the highest death tolls due to traffic accidents in ASEAN and theworld, with an average 60 killed each day or over 21,000 a year./.
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Heavy traffic is seen in Nang Rong district of Buri Ram province as New Year revellers start to return to Bangkok. (Photo: Bangkok Post)
