Failure to yield right-of-way was the leading contributor to fatal traffic accidents last year for the second consecutive year, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications and the National Police Agency yesterday.
In 2012, drunk driving was still the leading cause of fatal accidents, followed by failure to yield violations and failure to comply with traffic signals, National Police Agency traffic division head Fang Yang-ning (方仰寧) said.
However, failure to yield violations has outranked drunk driving as the main culprit of deadly accidents for two straight years since 2013, he added.
Most violations involved vehicles on a branch road failing to yield to vehicles on an arterial road, vehicles on the left failing to yield to vehicles on the right, vehicles on a route with fewer lanes failing to yield to vehicles on a route with more lanes, or vehicles taking a turn failing to yield to vehicles going forward, he said, adding that most accidents occurred where there are no signs or traffic lights.
A total of 258 category A1 accidents — where the injured party died within 24 hours of the accident — were related to drivers and motorists’ failure to yield right-of-way last year, with 260 deaths and 107 injuries, Fang said.
Category A2 accidents — non-fatal traffic accidents — in association with failure to yield violation peaked at 63,507 cases, with 86,765 people injured, he said.
The police issued a total of 19,538 citations for failure to yield violations last year, but that failed to stem unruly driving, he said.
Failure to yield the right-of-way can be seen at junctions and alleyways, with vehicle operators not bothering to stop or slow when crossing an intersection, resulting in a great number of traffic collisions, he said.
Feng Chia University transportation professor Lee Ke-tsung (李克聰) said that Taiwanese always yield seats on public transport, but fail to yield when on the road, which he said is a “national shame.”
Lee said he has witnessed many motorists near his university who do not slow at all when crossing an intersection, suggesting that vehicle operators are unacquainted with vehicle right-of-way rules.
The agency called for motorists to come to a complete stop whenever the traffic light turns yellow or wherever there is no sign or traffic light at an intersection.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost