Motorway is widely regarded as unsafe for travel due to the rising number of accidents and tragedies each year.
According to an official document available with ProPakistani, there have been 387 accidents on motorways in the last year, claiming the lives of 503 and injuring 270 people. 259 of these accidents were fatal, whereas 128 saw no fatalities.
July 2022 saw 23 accidents on the motorways. That number climbed to 39 accidents in August 2022, up 69% on a month-over-month (MoM) basis.
In September 2022, the number of accidents decreased by 33% MoM, with 26 accidents reported. October 2022 saw another surge in accidents by 23% MoM with 32 accidents reported.
In November 2022, the motorway reported 39 accidents, up 22% MoM. December 2022 saw 34 accidents, down 13% MoM. January 2023 saw 27 motorway accidents, down 20% MoM, whereas February 2023 again saw 34 accidents, up 26% from the previous month.
March 2033 saw 26 accidents, down 23% from the previous month, whereas April 2023 saw 32 accidents, up 23% from the previous month.
May 2023 again saw 26 accidents on the motorway, down 19% MoM, whereas June 2023 saw 35 accidents, up 35% from the month prior. July 2023 saw 14 accidents, down 16% from the previous month.
According to a National Highway and Motorway Police (NHMP) spokesperson, the leading causes of accidents are traffic rule violations, excessive speeding, reckless driving, and bringing vehicles onto the motorway that are in a derelict condition.
The spokesperson said that the department has started a drive to not allow smoke-emitting and poor-condition vehicles onto the motorway. “The NHMP is cognizant of the rising number of accidents on the motorway and taking concrete steps to eliminate the problem.” the spokesperson added.
