In recent years, there have been many fatal accidents involving vehicles and pedestrians in Taiwan, and drunk driving problems have also emerged in an endless stream, making Taiwan known as a pedestrian hell. According to the number of traffic accident deaths per 100,000 people, the World Bank lists the world’s top five pedestrian hells, namely Dominican Republic, Zimbabwe, Venezuela, Liberia, and Eritrea.
TAIPEI, TAIWAN (Merxwire) – In recent years, there have been many fatal accidents involving vehicles and pedestrians in Taiwan, and the problem of drunk driving is also quite serious, which has drawn much attention to the safety of pedestrians. Even let Taiwan be crowned with the name of pedestrian hell. The government authorities also raised the upper limit of fines on June 30 this year, hoping that drivers will be more polite to pedestrians. In addition to Taiwan, World Bank also lists the top five pedestrian hells in the world. These five countries are Dominican, Zimbabwe, Venezuela, Liberia, and Eritrea.
The Worst Traffic Safety Country 1st Place – Dominican Republic
World Bank judges the five countries with the highest traffic accident death rate per 100,000 deaths. The first place is the Dominican Republic in Central America, which has the highest proportion of car accident deaths in the world. For every 100,000 fatalities, 61 are due to car accidents. The main reason is that drivers have poor driving habits and the proportion of people who do not obey traffic rules is also extremely high. They don’t have the habit of turning on the direction lights when driving and don’t give way to pedestrians. Pedestrians do not have the priority right of way in Dominican, and their own road use concept is not good. They often cross the road and ignore traffic signs. The local traffic signals and control measures are not perfect, so accidents happen frequently.
The Worst Traffic Safety Country 2nd Place – Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe in South Africa ranks second, with 41 deaths per 100,000 deaths due to car accidents. The main reason is poor road facilities. Most roads lack lighting and reflective equipment, and there are no overtaking lanes and road shoulders planned. Traffic signals are often out of order. Many cars do not have their lights on, making it difficult to identify their location in the dark. Speeding and drunk driving are also quite common, especially at night. Coupled with the factors of poor law enforcement, the capital Harare has an average of 40 to 50 car accidents every night, which is quite alarming.
The Worst Traffic Safety Country 3rd place – Venezuela
In Venezuela, a country located in South America, 39 of every 100,000 deaths are due to car accidents. Many motorcycles are passing through the traffic, and drivers need to avoid hitting them carefully, otherwise, more car accidents will happen. Since the regulations do not mandate the wearing of seat belts, accidents become more serious and some cars do not even install seat belts, making driving more dangerous. The traffic in the capital CARACAS is quite congested, and robbers will take the opportunity to rob in the traffic, making driving even more dangerous and chaotic.
The Worst Traffic Safety Country 4th place – Liberia
In Liberia, West Africa, 39 out of every 100,000 deaths were due to car accidents. In the case of poor infrastructure, there are many potholes on the road surface, which is very dangerous for cycling or driving. There are almost no street lights in rural areas, visibility at night is poor, and pedestrians are often been hit. Whether it is a motorcycle, car, or truck that is often fully loaded, it is easy to overturn due to an unstable center of gravity when encountering potholes or braking. Driving does not have the habit of turning on the turn signal before stopping, and sudden stopping often leads to car collision accidents. There are many old vehicles, some of which have almost no tire tread, so there are many accidents of vehicle skids and flat tires.
The Worst Traffic Safety Country 5th place – Eritrea
In Eritrea in East Africa, 38 out of every 100,000 deaths were due to car accidents. Compared with the four countries mentioned above, the pavement conditions of its important cities are relatively good. Major traffic problems occur on secondary roads and suburban areas where roads are less paved or even unpaved. There are no safety barriers around the mountain roads, and the lighting equipment is insufficient. Many people choose to go to the target site on foot because there is no means of transportation. Walking at night with insufficient lighting equipment is easy to hit by vehicles. Coupled with the fact that medical equipment is not perfect, it is often impossible to get proper treatment, and the mortality rate is naturally high.
According to the statistics of the World Health Organization, more than 90% of traffic accidents occur in low and middle-income countries, where the traffic conditions are usually chaotic. It is related to people’s perceptions, the degree of local development, and the state of law enforcement. Statistics show that about 20 million to 50 million people are injured in car accidents every year, and some people are disabled due to accidents. About 1.3 million people died in car accidents, and young men accounted for a higher proportion of the dead.
From a regional perspective, Africa has the highest traffic accident death rate, while Europe has the lowest. In terms of gender, the proportion of men in car accidents is much higher than that of women. In terms of age, the average age of traffic accident victims is relatively young, and 73% of traffic accident victims are young men under the age of 25, which is about three times that of young female deaths. Car accidents are the main cause of death in the age group of 5 to 29 years old, which shows that the age of those who encounter car accidents is relatively low. Studies have also found that people with lower socioeconomic status are more likely to be involved in traffic accidents, even in developed countries.
According to the WHO, the main causes of fatal traffic accidents are speeding, drunk driving, drug driving, not wearing seat belts, not wearing helmets, inattentive driving, inadequate road facilities, and poor law enforcement. The United Nations has also formulated a global road safety agreement for this purpose, hoping to reduce the number of traffic accident injuries and deaths by half by 2030.
The impact of traffic accidents is not only on the casualties themselves but also affects the harmony of the families of both parties, causing subsequent huge living burdens and economic losses. If death or disability is caused by a car accident, the ability to work and productivity will be reduced, which will be a long-term loss to the family and society and will not bring back precious lives.
Therefore, both drivers and pedestrians must be more careful and vigilant and must protect the safety of both parties while safeguarding their rights. In addition to obeying the traffic rules, you must also pay attention to the road conditions at all times, so that you can go home safely.