Higher road casualties toll

The number of reported traffic accidents in the fourth quarter of last year reached 3,491, an increase of 70 over the same quarter in 2002, the National Statistics Office said.

During that period there were three traffic deaths - two males and one female.

In the quarter under review, 172 drivers sustained injuries as a result of traffic accidents; of these, 133 suffered slight injuries and 39 suffered either grievous or fatal injuries. During the same period, 52 pedestrians and 84 passengers were injured.

The number of slightly-injured persons in the fourth quarter of 2003 totalled 232; of these, 133 were males and 99 were females.

In the 15-24 and 25-39 age groups, 42 males suffered slight injuries. The number of injured females in the same age groups reached 24 and 33 respectively. Persons sustaining grievous and fatal injuries totalled 75; 58 were males and 17 were females.

In the fourth quarter of 2003, there were 307 reported casualties; of these, 226 or 73.6 per cent were caused by passenger cars, while 45 or 14.7 per cent were caused by motorcycles.

There were 87 casualties in the 25-39 years age group, 60 of them occurring to passenger car travellers.