Road crashes claim 55,015 lives in 10 years – Report
No fewer than 55,015 lives have been lost to road crashes across the country over the past 10 years, data from the Federal Road Safety Commission revealed.
The records also showed that 108,369 road crashes occurred within the same period.
According to the data, 5,440 lives were lost in 2015, while 5,053 fatalities were recorded in 2016. The number rose slightly to 5,121 in 2017 and 5,181 in 2018.
In 2019, road crashes claimed 5,483 lives, followed by 5,574 deaths in 2020. The figures increased to 6,205 in 2021 and peaked at 6,456 in 2022. The number of fatalities then declined to 5,081 in 2023 and slightly rose to 5,421 in 2024.
The report further detailed the number of road crashes recorded annually.
In 2015, there were 9,734 reported cases, while 9,694 crashes were documented in 2016.
The figures stood at 9,383 in 2017 and increased to 9,741 in 2018. By 2019, the number of crashes had risen to 11,072 and continued climbing to 11,875 in 2020.
In 2021, 13,027 crashes were recorded, with the highest number occurring in 2022 at 13,656. The figures declined to 10,617 in 2023 and further to 9,570 in 2024.
The corps’ Spokesperson, Olusegun Ogungbemide, in an interview with our correspondent on Saturday, noted that various measures had been implemented to enhance road safety, including the introduction of mandatory speed limiters for commercial vehicles, which has contributed to a decline in highway fatalities.
Ogungbemide added that free safety checks and vehicle inspection programmes had been put in place to ensure roadworthiness, targeting common issues such as brake failure and faulty lighting.
He said, “The introduction of speed limiters for commercial vehicles has helped reduce crashes caused by speeding. Available data shows a decline in fatalities on highways following this enforcement.
“FRSC visits motor parks and works with transport unions to promote road safety awareness among commercial drivers.
“Despite these efforts and effective enforcement put in place by the corps, some recalcitrant drivers still pose heavy challenges to the corps due to their habitual violation of established laws.”
