How IRF training is helping save lives in Jamaica

According to World Health Organisation figures, 307 lives were lost in over 13,000 road accidents in 2011, a figure dominated by male drivers and car occupants. Buoyed by IRF’s Safer Road by Design seminar which preceded the Congress, the Road Safety Unit in the Jamaican Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing is already taking steps to address the presence of turned-down ends and concrete utility poles on the country’s roadsides.
July 20, 2012 Read time: 2 mins

According to 3263 World Health Organisation figures, 307 lives were lost in over 13,000 road accidents in 2011, a figure dominated by male drivers and car occupants.

Buoyed by 3918 IRF Washington’s Safer Road by Design seminar which preceded the Congress, the Road Safety Unit in the Jamaican Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing is already taking steps to address the presence of turned-down ends and concrete utility poles on the country’s roadsides.

In an interview with the Jamaica Observer, Kenute Hare, the unit’s director, stated that the presence of rigid light poles could prove fatal if a motorist should lose control of his/her vehicle. "International standards dictate we have to make the roadways more user friendly. So, we are asking the light and power company to erect new light posts using less rigid material for the light posts", he added.

Efforts to tackle distracted driving also gained significant moment during the congress with the announcement of new legislation banning the use of cell phones while driving before the end of 2012. In his opening statement at the congress, minister Davies declared: “We intend to launch pre-emptive strikes against those who are intent on creating imbalances in the traffic environment. The new Road Traffic Act will, among other things, deal with the issue of driving while using mobile phones, including texting while driving.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Road safety improvement for the US
    December 11, 2012
    The US is seeing improvements in road safety overall, with a drop in road crash statistics for 2011. The data for 2011 is encouraging and the US Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has released a new analysis indicating that highway deaths fell to 32,367 in 2011. This marked the lowest level of road related fatalities since 1949, 1.9% decrease from the previous year. Furthermore, this updated 2011 data show the historic downward trend in recent years continu
    Read More
  • Concerns over increased US road fatality rate in 2012
    November 25, 2013
    Data from the US Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that highway deaths increased to 33,561 in 2012, an increase of 1,082 over the figures for 2011.The official Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data reveals that the majority of the increase in deaths, some 72%, occurred in the first quarter of 2012. Most of those involved were motorcyclists and pedestrians. This newly released data marks the first increase in road related fatalities in the US
    Read More
  • Motorcycle-Guardrail Crashes: How can the risk of severe injury and fatality be reduced?
    July 23, 2012
    The problem: motorcyclist fatalities can occur from a variety of accidents. But in the United States in 2005, motorcyclists comprised 42% of fatalities due to guardrail collisions, whereas only 3% of vehicles on the roads were motorcycles (Gabler, 2007). More motorcyclists were killed in guardrail collisions than passengers of any other vehicle type in 2005 (Gabler, 2007). Guardrails cannot simply be removed to protect motorcyclists. However, improvements need to be made in several areas in order to keep mo
    Read More
  • GHSA wants more action on distracted driving
    May 5, 2021
    Some US state laws have not kept pace with technology, says lobby group StopDistractions.org
    Read More

Highlighted Content