Speakers at a discussion on Sunday stressed the need for a dedicated and inclusive road safety law to reduce preventable fatalities on the country’s roads.

Citing WHO data Sharmeen Rahman, Road Safety Project Coordinator at Dhaka Ahsania Mission, said around 1.19 million people lose their lives in road crashes every year across the globe, with the vast majority of these fatalities occurring in low and middle-income countries including Bangladesh,

Ninety two percent of global road crash deaths occur in developing countries with pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists accounting for over half of the victims, she said at the event titled “Road Safety Law is Essential for All” held at the organisation’s Health Sector office in the capital’s Shyamoli.

Bangladesh ranks 106th out of 183 countries most affected by road crashes, she added.

Only through strong laws and effective enforcement can we hope to bring down the number of road crashes, she said.

May sees 614 road fatalities in Bangladesh: Jatri Kalyan Samity

Suvro Deb, Senior Crime Reporter at the Daily Manab Zamin,  moderated the event.

Speakers included Mohd Jahangir Alam, General Secretary of the Shipping and Communication Reporters Forum (SCRF) and Special Correspondent at UNB; Jamiul Ahsan Shipu, Senior Reporter at the Daily Ittefaq; and Imon Rahman, Staff Crime Reporter at the Daily Jugantor.

They speakers soid while the existing Road Transport Act 2018 and Road Transport Rules 2022 provide some regulation for the transport sector, they fall short in addressing core aspects of road safety.

Key areas like road infrastructure, vehicle standards, protection of vulnerable road users, and efficient post-crash response remain inadequately covered, they said.

“The current laws are primarily transport-centric and do not sufficiently account for the broader dimensions of road safety,” said Jahangir Alam.

Muklesur Rahman, Deputy Director of the Health Sector at Dhaka Ahsania Mission, reiterated the need for a comprehensive law aligned with five priority areas recommended by the United Nations: integrated transport and land-use planning, safer vehicles, improved road infrastructure, protection of road users, and effective post-crash care.

He called on policymakers to act urgently to enact and implement a standalone Road Safety Law to safeguard lives on the roads.