The number of motor vehicle accidents in the country increased last year compared to the past two years. According to the records with the police, the numbers however are still much lower than the pre-pandemic times. Drink driving remains the leading cause of vehicle crashes in the country.
The country recorded 780 motor vehicle accidents last year. This was an increase of 35 cases from 2021 which recorded 745 accidents.
There were nearly 80 fatalities from car accidents last year as compared to just over 70 the year before.
There was a decline in the accident numbers in 2020 (811) and 2021 (745) compared to 1470 cases reported in 2019. The Traffic Police said the decrease in the numbers during the two years could be due to the covid pandemic and travel restrictions.
Last year’s records showed that Chhukha had the highest number of accidents at about 120. Paro recorded the second-highest accident cases followed by Wangdue Phodrang.
While drink-driving was the most common cause of accidents, authorities said other causes were over-speeding and vehicles being operated by unlicensed or inexperienced drivers. Road conditions, weather conditions and mechanical failures also led to several accidents.
While many districts did not report any hit-and-run cases, Paro had the highest number. In total, 30 hit-and-run cases were reported across the country.
Records with the police show that more than half of the accidents involved single vehicles. Nearly 500 cases were single-vehicle accidents, while nearly 200 accidents were from two-vehicle collisions. And there were nearly 40 cases of vehicles hitting pedestrians last year.
Kinley Dem
Edited by Yeshi Gyaltshen
