More than 400,000 people were killed or injured in traffic incidents each year from 2014 to last year, a National Road Traffic Safety Commission report said on Wednesday.
Deaths and injuries caused by traffic incidents have generally risen over the past 10 years, the report said.
While 2013 saw about 375,000 deaths and injuries from traffic incidents, there were more than 400,000 in 2014, 2015 and last year.
Photo: copy by Chen Wen-chan, Taipei Times
This year, the number is again expected to hit 400,000, more than Keelung’s population of 370,000, the report added.
The number of people who died within 30 days after an incident has declined over the past decade, the commission said.
However, in the past few years, an average of 3,000 people died within 30 days of an incident each year, more than the number of deaths from the 921 Earthquake, it added.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications has set a goal of reducing 30-day traffic-related fatalities from 3,000 this year to 2,500 in 2019.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Hochen Tan (賀陳旦) said the ministry’s campaign has generated some results, adding that the nation has also introduced stricter punishments for traffic violations.
“However, it is still heartbreaking to hear reports of some people driving around Taiwan in eight hours,” as such behavior demonstrates a disregard for the safety of others on the road, he said.
The nation still has work to do to improve traffic conditions, Hochen said, adding that people should consider road safety part of their responsibility.
Efforts to improve road safety should be made one of the indicators to evaluate the competitiveness of a municipality, he added.
(The headline has been corrected since publication.)
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday said that a surge in respiratory illnesses in China has been caused by at least seven types of pathogens, and small children, elderly people and immunocompromised people should temporarily avoid unnecessary visits to China. The recent outbreak of respiratory illnesses in China is mainly in the north and among children, CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said on Monday. Data released by the Chinese National Health Commission on Sunday showed that among children aged one to four, the main pathogens were influenza viruses and rhinoviruses, while among children aged five to 14, the main pathogens
A New Taipei City hotpot restaurant could be fined after a rat dropped from the ceiling and landed on a customer’s plate last week, the New Taipei City Department of Health said yesterday after conducting an inspection. A woman recently posted on the “I am a Banciao resident” (我是板橋人) social media group saying that she had been eating with a friend at Chien Tu Shabu Shabu Hotpot Restaurant’s Shuangshi B branch in Banciao District (板橋). “While still eating, a big rat suddenly dropped down from the ceiling, landing on a plate next to a hotpot,” she said. “Later on, a member of
A new poll of Taiwanese voters found the top opposition candidate for president jumping past the ruling party’s hopeful into the lead position ahead of January’s election — the latest twist in a drama-filled race. Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) had an approval rating of 31.9 percent versus 29.2 percent for the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the poll released yesterday by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation showed. The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), ranked third with 23.6 percent, according to the survey conducted
Actress Hu Ling (胡伶) on Saturday became the first Chinese movie star to walk the red carpet of the Golden Horse Awards since 2019, when China boycotted Taiwan’s biggest awards show over political tensions. Beijing banned its entertainers from joining the awards, dubbed the Chinese-language Oscars, after documentary director Fu Yu (傅榆) voiced support for Taiwan’s formal independence in an acceptance speech in 2018. There were no films from China in the 2019 nomination list and several Hong Kong movies dropped out that year, while several big commercial productions were conspicuously absent at both the 2020 and 2021 awards. However, Hu, nominated for