India tops road fatality figures

A new report by the 3263 World Health Organisation (WHO) places India as having the highest annual road fatalities of any country in the world. The study is based on data collected from 11 May-13 December 2011, with 130,037 having been killed on India’s roads during this period. China had the next highest number of road deaths at 70,134, followed by Brazil at 36,499, the US with 32,885 and Russia with 26,567. Next in the list were were Iran, Mexico, South Africa, and Thailand, with 23,249, 17,301, 14,804, and 13,766 road fatalities respectively. The WHO report also highlighted that only 28 nations across the globe enforce road safety regulations covering the use of child safety seats, seat-belts and motorcycle helmets, as well as tackling drink driving and speeding. Of the total road fatalities in Thailand, nearly 74% involved road users on two or three-wheeled vehicles, while 13% and 8% accounted for four-wheeler motorists and light vehicle motorists/pedestrians respectively.