Holistic approach needed for safer roads

We commend the Dhaka Metropolitan Police's new app, designated to report and collect real-time road crash data in the capital. While this is a positive step towards preventing road crashes, the app should not be the sole solution for preventive measures.

Unlike the current method, where crashes are recorded manually by the police's crime division, this app—Database and Analysis of Road Crash (DARC)—will be used by traffic police, who are usually the first responders to road crashes. They will enter and report information such as time, location, date, weather, road crash type, and other contributing factors to road crashes. This way they will be able to record not only fatal crashes but also non-fatal ones and those where the death occurs later in hospitals. The data can be analysed to identify accident-prone areas and also the reasons behind them. Nevertheless, it is not that we are oblivious to the causes of road crashes in Dhaka. For years, we have known reckless driving, unfit vehicles on roads, lack of formal training among public transport drivers, the total disregard for traffic laws, and the absence of traffic lanes—to mention a few—as some of the major reasons behind road crashes. Addressing these obvious issues is as important, if not more so, than digitalising the road crashes reporting mechanism.

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The constant terror of road crashes

In the past, we have seen the launch of many apparently useful applications, but often, after the initial hype, their usage remained poor with the outcome falling short of expectations. Therefore, for this app to be effective, not only do all traffic police personnel need training on its proper usage, but the DMP must also ensure police have the device, proper internet connectivity, and the aptitude and willingness to enter the data correctly following a road crash. Besides, the usage should be expanded nationwide in phases to create a national road crash database. Finally, authorities must approach road crash prevention measures holistically by developing mid-and long-term strategies to address the underlying causes, instead of simply taking ad hoc steps.