Reasons for frequent road accident in Haiti, speed and driver on the phone

From statistics gathered over the past almost decade and a half, the charge can be laid at the feet of speed and phone usage for the amount of road accidents on Haitian streets. This information comes from the Office Of Vehicle Insurance Against Third (OAVCT). Another factor of the number of road casualties and fatalities was attributed to passengers not wearing seat belts.

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Haitian traffic laws are not conclusive enough to deal with the problems. For instance, while there is a law against driving under the influence of alcohol, it fails to say what is the acceptable blood alcohol level. Also, while urban areas are governed by a speed limit, rural drivers are only restricted when there is a sign indicating a speed limit. There is also no law enforcing that children be seated in child seats while in a vehicle, and traffic police find it very difficult to enforce seat belt laws. These lapses in the reach of the law allows for high numbers of accidents on Haitian roads.

Between the year 2000 and the year 2010, a reported 16, 889 people between the ages of 20 and 30 years and 13, 689 people between the ages of 30 and 50 years were involved in road accidents. The number of casualties outside those age brackets brings the total up to 45,780 for the 10-year period. Even with these already high numbers, it is to be considered that there are instances where accidents are not reported and this record only considers those which are.

After the 2010 period, the country ended the year with 3, 664 road accidents. For 2011 there were 4, 710. In 2012 an estimated 3,831 accidents occurred, then down to 2, 590 for 2013. So far this year, counting only the first ten months of the year, the number has begun to increase with 2,884 road accidents by October. Worth noting is that the accident statistics show a highly disproportionate number of men being involved over women.

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