Around 17 per cent and around 13 per cent fatal road accident victims were women and children respectively in the past month of July, said a Road Safety Foundation report published on Tuesday.
According to the report, 418 people were killed and 856 others were injured in 443 road accidents across the country in July.
Among the deceased 72 or 17.22 per cent were women, and 53 or 12.67 per cent were children.
Additionally, 18 people were killed and seven others injured in 21 train accidents. In four waterways accidents, six people were killed.
The foundation issued a press release summarising their monthly report based on media reports.
Of the fatal victims, the highest 109 were motorcycle riders and pillions. Accidents involving three-wheeler vehicles, including CNG-run auto-rickshaws and vans, come next with 108 deaths. Both drivers and passengers were among the victims of these accidents.
Among the rest of the killed were 92 pedestrians, 41 bus drivers, their assistants and passengers, 30 were drivers of trucks and pickup vans, their assistants and illegal passengers, 20 drivers and passengers of cars, microbuses and ambulances, 12 drivers and passengers of locally made vehicles like nasimon, karimon and bhatbhati and Mahindra, and six were bicyclists and rickshaw passengers. 聽
Occupation-wise, among the deceased, 47 were students, 13 were businesspeople, nine were sales representatives, five were apparel workers, four each were teachers and non-government organisation workers and three each were construction workers and different bank and insurance officers.聽
The report also showed that the highest 45.82 per cent road accidents happened on national highways, followed by 33.63 per cent on regional highways, 10.83 per cent on rural roads, 8.35 on urban roads, and 1.35 per cent on other places.
Regarding the nature of the accidents, the highest 48.75 per cent were caused when the drivers lost control of the vehicles, followed by 21.21 per cent vehicles crushed onto other things, 18.28 per cent by head-on collisions, 9.93 per cent by hitting other vehicles from behind, and 1.8 per cent by other reasons.
In Dhaka division, the highest 117 road accidents happened killing 105, while the lowest 29 accidents happened in Barishal division killing 16 people. In the capital city, 26 accidents killed 19 people and injured 38.
The foundation put down the accidents mainly to the running of unfit vehicles, faulty roads, reckless driving, unskilled and unfit drivers, absence of monthly salaries for the drivers, and plying of slow moving vehicles on roads.聽
Earlier in a report published on August 12, however, the Passenger Welfare Association of Bangladesh said that at least 520 people were killed and 1,356 others were injured in 506 road accidents across the country in July.
Both the organisations are non-governmental bodies working on road safety issues.
