Road safety centre reopens | Bangkok Post: news

The annual centre for preventing and reducing the number of road accidents during the 2011 New Year holiday period, and tabulating the road toll, was opened on Monday.

Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department chief Wibul Sanguanpong said the centre, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Yongyuth Wichaidit, will promote road safety and monitor the number of traffic accidents during the "Seven Dangerous Days" between Dec 29 and Jan 4.The government has a target to reduce the number of road casualties during this period by at least five per cent from the same period of last year, Mr Wibul said.During the previous New Year period there were 3,497 road accidents, resulting in 358 deaths and 3,750 injuries. There were 2,994 accidents involving motorcycles in the previous New Year holiday, about 83 per cent of the total accidents.Drunk driving was given as the major cause of accidents.Each year, the highest number of road casualties has been on Jan 1. About 68 per cent of the accidents occur at night.Mr Wibul said his department has issued road safety guidelines  for law enforcement, traffic engineering, public relations, emergency medicine and rescue work.Theyse will be implemented in the form of road checkpoints, service areas that meet local demand, and strict action against traffic violators  -...