The number of fatalities due to road accidents recorded last year showed a drop of 412 cases to 6,740 deaths, compared with 7,152 deaths in 2016.

Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai said the fatality index due to road accident for every 10,000 registered vehicles was 2.34 in 2017, from 2.59 the previous year.

“I intend to reduce the death index due to road accident for every 10,000 registered vehicles to 2.0 this year,” he said when launching the national-level Road Safety Campaign and Integrated Ops in conjunction with the Chinese New Year celebration in Kuala Lumpur today.

Liow said motorcycles still remained the main contributor to the number of fatalities in road accidents, with 64.5 percent (4,348) of motorists killed last year being motorcyclists.

Meanwhile, speaking to reporters after the event, Liow said implementation of the Automated Awareness Safety System (Awas) showed a huge success.

The system, which is an integration of the Automated Enforcement System (AES) and the Kejara demerit points system, recorded up to 95 percent compliance in speed limit since it was implemented, he said.

Liow said 5,600 personnel from the Road Safety Department, Road Transport Department (RTD) and the police were participating in the “Ops Selamat” by the police and RTD’s “Ops Bersepadu”, both of which began yesterday and will be running simultaneously until Feb 23.

Ops Selamat focuses on advocacy and enforcement of the law, while Ops Bersepadu is implemented with the cooperation of the National Anti-Drug Agency (AADK).

Liow also said several other measures would be implemented during the Chinese New Year celebration, including prohibition on commercial vehicles on Feb 14, 15, 24 and 24.

Maintenance and construction work on highways, federal and state roads will be halted during the operation period.

- Bernama