32 killed in Easter holiday accidents so far

Published: 02 April 2018

A TOTAL OF 32 people have died while 163 have been injured on the country's roads since the beginning of the Easter holidays, police have said.

National Traffic spokesperson Chief Superintendent Paul Nyathi said the major cause of accidents was human error.

"While no major road traffic accidents have been recorded during the Easter holiday the major causes of the accidents so far have been observed to be speeding, inattention, misjudgment, overtaking errors and failure to observe road rules and regulations.

We urge drivers to travel at safe speeds and consider the safety of other road users. Pedestrians are also being urged to be observant when crossing roads and to use designated crossing points," said Chief Supt Nyathi.

He said 265 road traffic accidents have been recorded so far during the Easter period compared to 166 in 2017 under the same period.

Chief Supt Nyathi said 32 people have been killed compared to 18 last year and 163 have been injured against 92 over the same period last year.

He said police have impounded 61 vehicles that had defects and were unroadworthy compared to last year's 63.

The Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe is encouraging daytime travel saying it's is safer than night driving.

MPs have previously said 85 percent of accidents in the country were blamed on human error. The MPs who are members of the transport committee listed 12 other causes of accidents in the country that include bad state of roads, speeding, drunken driving, fatigue, use of cell phones when driving and going through red robots.

The use of second hand tyres, stationary and defective vehicles as well as stray animals on the roads, inadequate road signage and markings as well as lack of traffic enforcement were also cited.

The lawmakers' report recommended that the government should increase fines charged for traffic offences so that they are deterrent. The authorities were also urged to introduce traffic courts where routine offenders are charged and licences are endorsed or cancelled.
- chronicle

Tags: Easter,