1.5 M road traffic deaths reported yearly – WHO

MANILA, Philippines – Road traffic deaths remain high, with around 1.5 million reported each year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Global Status Report on Road Safety 2015. 

“Road traffic fatalities take an unacceptable toll – particularly on poor people in poor countries,” said WHO Director General Margaret Chan.

The report stated that motorcyclists are particularly vulnerable, making up 23 percent of all road traffic deaths.

The number of motorcycle deaths in the Americas rose from 15 percent to 20 percent between 2010 and 2013. In the Southeast Asia and Western Pacific regions, a third of all road traffic deaths were motorcyclists. 

Pedestrians and cyclists are among the groups with the least protection, making up 22 percent and four percent of global deaths, respectively.  

Safety standards

The report said some vehicles, particularly in low-and middle-income countries, fail to meet basic safety standards.

It said at least 79 countries have seen a decrease in the number of fatalities while 68 countries have seen an increase in the last three years.

Countries with the least number of road traffic deaths have improved legislation and enforcement and made roads and vehicles safer.

“The world is moving in that direction... it also tells us that the pace of change is too slow,” the report stated.

Road users around the world are unequally protected, the report said, adding the risk of dying in a road traffic crash still depends on where people live and how they move around. 

It said a big gap separates high-income countries from low- and middle-income ones where 90 percent of road traffic deaths occur in spite of having just 54 percent of the world’s vehicles. Europe has the lowest death rates per capita while Africa the highest.