One in Every Eight Deaths Happen on the Road
According to Dr. Hassan Al Thani, Head of the Trauma, Vascular Surgery and General Surgery Sections at Hamad General Hospital, traffic accidents in Qatar are responsible for 12.5 percent of deaths.
In other words, one in eight deaths is caused by road accidents.
With this alarmingly high rate of deaths caused by accidents, experts believe it is high time ways were devised to mitigate this deadly phenomenon which, most often, take young lives.
The average traffic accidents in Qatar reaches 4,000 annually and 600 of these cause serious injuries while 200 lead to deaths; according to Dr. Al Thani.
Stressing that road accidents are a major cause of deaths in Qatar, Dr Al Thani said the average rate of deaths from accidents is higher than that caused by life-threatening diseases such as cancer and other blood-related ailments.
He said injuries from accidents result in complicated diseases which cannot be tackled by simple solutions, but accidents can be avoided.
Ibrahim Al Ibrahim, a columnist Arabic daily Al Raya, was of the same view, saying everyone, whether an official, ordinary citizen or expatriate, has to reflect on these figures and the accidents which lead to these high rates of deaths considering the country’s small population.
In his column, he recommended that authorities review the traffic law, including regulations on issuance of driving licences. He said these laws should be modified to help reduce accidents.
The main reasons are driving in high speed and failure to abide by traffic rules, he said.
Among his suggestions is to raise the age bar for obtaining driving licence. He said licence should not be granted to those under 20.
Source: The Peninsula | Photo: QL Flickr Group
inconsiderate idiots from what I have seen. for crying out loud do you really need to cut across and scrap the paint of the car behind you or cut in at a roundabout at a 45 degree angle. I've never seen anything like driving here - total morons. like they are all16 year old boys that got the license yesterday
Some drivers here are crazy bastards and they think they own the road.So,eventually the sane drivers are gonna get hurt and those crazy drivers end up getting dead because of their STUPID RASH DRIVING...
mohdata: I've had rear rails installed on my Pink Kia to stop it from flipping when the torque gets to the rear wheels. You are right though. Don't blame the car. Blame the driver
sensemine: 120kph in less than 10 secs is not fast..and anyways, we shouldn't blame the poor cars for their owners' genius
Powerful engine and ignorance behavior along the road is the reason behind accidents and death. Very sad that most of these drivers are reckless and arrogant..they never think of their lives so nothing to care with other road users too! An SUV with 300 kph speed for what?? A car can reached the speed of 120 kph in less than 10 seconds for what??
I think they should seriously consider bring back the camels and horses and mode of transport!
It is not just the death rates or injuries but the effect on the families and loved ones. The consequences are enormous.
Sadly, most of us come here and talk about it, but don't take any steps to address the problem - especially with our own driving habits.