Traffic-related mortality rates from January to May dropped by 8.9 percent compared with the same period last year, but pedestrian mortality rates have gone up by 2.6 percent, according to a Ministry of Transportation and Communications report released yesterday.
The ministry’s data showed that 160,249 traffic incidents occurred from January to May, down by 4.9 percent, or 8,182 incidents, compared with the same period last year.
The number of injuries stood at 214,124, down 5.3 percent, or 11,948 injuries, compared with the same time last year, the report showed.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
The overall mortality, at 1,193, dropped by 8.9 percent, or 116 people, compared with the same period last year, exceeding the ministry’s goal of decreasing mortality rates by 5 percent, it showed.
However, pedestrian deaths during the period — at 160 people — increased by 2.6 percent, or four people, compared with the same period last year, it showed.
Elderly people, defined as those aged 65 or above, comprise the majority of pedestrian deaths, at 118 people, or 74 percent, the ministry said.
In addition, the ministry statistics showed that mortality rates involving scooter riders, children or adolescents, and those driving under the influence (DUI) decreased compared with the same period last year.
Scooter rider mortality stood at 715, down 109 people, or 13.2 percent, compared with last year, the report showed.
The number of elderly people passing away from traffic-related incidents was 478, down 7.5 percent, or 39 people, from last year, while the number of deaths in DUI incidents was 76, dropping by 32.1 percent, or 36 people, it showed.
Cars top the list of vehicle types involved in traffic accidents at 58 percent, with scooters coming in second at 35 percent, according to the report.
Hsinchu City had the most individuals passing away within 30 days of being in a crash, at 10 people, while Taichung saw the largest decrease in the number of people, at 26.
Meanwhile, Pingtung County had the highest rate of people dying within 30 days of getting involved in a crash, at 13.2 people, while Lienchiang County had the lowest rate, with 0. The figures did not come with a scale
Hsinchu had the highest count of pedestrian deaths at 2.4 people, while Pingtung County took the lead in having the most number of deaths caused by scooter-related incidents at 9.4 people.
Pingtung County also saw the highest number of elderly people dying from traffic-related incidents at 31.8 people, while Taitung County saw the most number of deaths from DUI-related incidents, at 2.4 people, it showed.
Minister of Transportation and Communications Li Meng-yen (李孟諺) called Lienchiang County a “pedestrian paradise,” while Department of Railways, Highways and Road Safety Deputy Director-General Huang Yun-kui (黃運貴) said the county had no traffic-related deaths from 2020 to last year.
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