KUCHING: The number of deaths due to road accidents in Sarawak had dropped by 7 per cent in 2017 (400 deaths) as compared to 2016 (432 deaths).
Assistant Minister for Transport Datuk Dr Jerip Susil said this was a good development and improvement, and he hoped that in 2018, the figure will further drop.
On average, 50 road accidents happened in Sarawak every day and from these accidents, there is at least one death.
“Therefore, if there is no intervention programme from all quarters, the deaths due to road accident might go up higher,” he said at a media conference after launching Road Safety Campaign in conjunction with Chinese New Year celebration at Kuching Sentral Bus Terminal here, yesterday.
The campaign was jointly organised by Sarawak Road Safety Department, Sarawak Road Safety Council, Kuching Sentral Bus Terminal Management, Royal Malaysian Police, Land Transport Department (JPJ), Puspakom and Allianze General Insurance.
Jerip informed that during the campaign, Puspakom will be offering free inspection on vehicles at all its branches, from Feb 5-15 to ensure that vehicles are always in good condition and safe to be used.
He said from Feb 9-23, JPJ enforcement officers and the police will go round to create awareness among road users the virtue of prioritising safety aspects and adhering to road regulations.
Dr Jerip also informed that Road Safety Council (MKJR) Sarawak will be implementing the Community Road Safety Alert at 17 accident prone areas along the Pan Borneo Highway.
On safety measures along the Pan Borneo Highway, he said all the respective 11 works packages are equipped with traffic management features – Emergency Response Team, flagmen, traffic barriers and so on, to manage traffic ‘live’ on the road while construction of the highway is being carried out.
He also informed the State Government had decided that all the 130 buses to be used by Konsortium Bas Bandaraya Kuching (KBBK) Sdn Bhd for the State Bus Services Transformation Programme (SBST) will be electric-powered buses which are expected to roll-off in the middle of 2019.
