The economic cost of preventable road traffic accidents is immense. But the misery it inflicts on the injured and bereaved families is immeasurable.
For those sensitive to socio-economic issues, it is most worrying that road traffic crashes have disproportionate costs for low-income households. The loss of the major family wage earner due to a road traffic accident can push households into poverty.
Public awareness of the socio-economic impact of road accidents becomes evident when life is lost due to a road accident. But soon, the media turns its attention to other issues. Those responsible for making our roads safer are often too busy with other matters to find the will to do what it takes to reduce avoidable accidents.
A strategy to make our roads safer must start with a reliable survey of what road accidents cost the country in economic terms. In the absence of any meaningful local information on the effects of road accidents on the economy, we have to rely on the next best available data.
The World Health Organisation states that road accidents cost approximately 1.5 per cent of the GDP in middle-income countries. Malta would probably rank with such countries.
Research conducted in the US breaks down the total costs of road accidents as follows: 28 per cent property damage; 25 per cent workplace productivity loss; eight per cent household productivity loss; and 39 per cent medical costs, traffic congestion and other costs.
According to the International Labour Organisation, road crashes are the number-one reason for on-the-job-deaths in most countries.
I suspect that in Malta, disregard for health and safety good practice, especially in workplaces that rely on low-skilled manual labour, is an even more critical issue than road accidents.
Information about road crash costs is a valuable input for road safety policy, making it essential for conducting a cost-benefit analysis of road safety strategies and tactics.
In Malta, disregard for health and safety good practice, especially in workplaces that rely on low-skilled manual labour, is a more critical issue than road accidents
The more crucial cost components that need to be taken into account are medical costs, production loss, human costs, vehicle damage and administration costs. We do not need to wait for a solid research study on what road accidents cost our society. Anyone who uses our roads regularly can intuitively reach some reliable conclusions. Many have rightly argued that overspeeding and substance abuse are the most important causes of preventable road accidents.
In countries like Sweden, where law enforcement is taken seriously by those responsible for keeping roads safe, overspeeding is curbed by electronic devices and physical checks by traffic regulations enforcers. Driving under the influence of substances is discouraged by regular spot checks. Unfortunately, enforcement of sensible civic regulations in Malta is inconsistent, thereby encouraging irresponsible drivers to take risks that endanger their and other people’s lives.
I will give some examples. Just drive on the Coast Road on any weekend, and you are bound to get involved in continuous motorcycle races that endanger other law-observing road users.
This dangerous spectacle now includes the presence of photographers with professional cameras taking snaps of overspeeding motorcyclists in full racing gear.
The police, traffic wardens, the transport authorities and local councils seem oblivious to these illegal and dangerous practices.
Urban areas, especially on a small overcrowded island, are notorious for the higher rate of road accidents. Once again, lax and inconsistent law enforcement are undoubtedly behind many preventable accidents.
On a typical 30-minute drive on our busy roads, it is not uncommon to witness two or three drivers using their mobile phones. Drawing the attention of offending drivers to this abuse risks being exposed to insults and threats by some who have an irrational sense of entitlement, knowing that law enforcement is at best weak.
There are, of course, many other preventable causes behind road accidents that go beyond inexperience or human error. Enforcement of sensible traffic regulations is often considered a low priority niche issue.
It rarely features in the public debate on how we can enrich the quality of life of road users. Some would argue that this is symptomatic of a country that believes that the enactment of good legislation matters more than enforcement.
The great majority of people want to get on with their lives, requiring only that the civil authorities protect them from the abuse of small minorities of abusers with an inflated sense of entitlement. Until we all understand that the enforcement of sensible regulations is a prerequisite for a fair society, we will continue to lose lives on our congested roads needlessly.