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The Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) has expressed concerns over a 14.3 percent increase in road fatalities during the first quarter of 2024.
According to the Zambia Police Service, the country experienced 9,035 road traffic crashes in this period.
Of these, 600 people died in 469 crashes, 1,570 sustained serious injuries in 876 crashes and 2,765 suffered minor injuries in 1,896 crashes.
Read More: Zambia police report decline in year on year Q2 accidents; 2024 posts 9,035 against 9,679 in 2023
In a statement issued in Lusaka on Tuesday, RTSA Acting Head of Public Relations, Mukela Mangolwa, noted that during the same period in 2023, there were 9,679 road traffic crashes, resulting in 525 deaths from 421 fatal crashes and 1,604 serious injuries from 919 serious crashes.
He pointed out that while the total number of road traffic crashes decreased by 6.7 percent, fatalities increased by 14.3 percent.
“Lusaka Province recorded the highest number of crashes with 4,924, followed by the Copperbelt with 1,156. Central Province had 795, Southern Province 496, Northwestern Province 423 and Eastern Province 324. Luapula Province had 270, Muchinga 255, while Western and Northern Provinces had the lowest with 187 each,” Mangolwa stated.
Among the fatalities, 223 were pedestrians, 177 were motor vehicle passengers, 66 were drivers, 57 were motorcycle riders, 44 were bicycle riders, 30 were motorcycle passengers, and three were bicycle passengers.
Notably, 155 of the fatalities were children under 16 years.
“The increase in fatalities, particularly in Lusaka and the Copperbelt Provinces, is attributed to human error and low compliance among motorists, motorcyclists, and pedestrians,” he added.
Meanwhile, Mangolwa reported a 21.3 percent reduction in traffic violations nationwide, with 11,625 violations recorded compared to 14,785 in the same quarter of 2023.
“Lusaka continues to record the highest number of violations, followed by the Copperbelt and Southern Provinces, while Luapula and Muchinga Provinces recorded the fewest violations,” he concluded.
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