The Department of Disease Control (DDC) has launched a road safety campaign in seven cities with high accident rates in a bid to reduce traffic injuries and fatalities.
DDC director-general Amnuay Kajina said the road safety campaign called City Road Traffic Injury (City RTI) will be a joint effort between the department and local administration organisations.
The seven cities targeted are Pattaya, Nakhon Ratchasima, Udon Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Khao Rup Chang in Songkhla, Chiang Mai and Khon Kaen.
Dr Amnuay was speaking after signing a road safety memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the seven municipalities on Wednesday.
A situation room will be set up to monitor traffic accidents, particularly in known black spots, while traffic safety zones will also be established where motorists will be encouraged to comply with traffic laws. These would include wearing safety helmets and seat belts as well as driving within speed limits. Using cellphones while driving, as well as driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, will be discouraged he explained, without elaborating.
The campaign will also focus on safety for children and cyclists on roads. Budgets and traffic-related technology will also be allocated based on traffic conditions in each city area, Dr Amnuay said.
Thailand has the world's second-highest road fatality rate, according to the World Health Organisation.
The Public Health Ministry and the Road Accident Victims Protection Co Ltd, say about 23,000-24,000 people die in traffic accidents each year, or three people per hour.
Each year, about one million people are injured in road accidents.
Of them, about 200,000 are hospitalised while 7,000 are left disabled, the ministry said.