Investigation into the Individual and Situational Factors which Influence the Increased Vehicular Accident Risk on our Roads

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Road traffic accident (RTA) has become an important public health concern over the past decades as an estimated Global figure of 1.3 million people loses their lives in every year. It is believed that almost 3,400 lives are lost every day and millions of people suffer various degrees of injuries and disabilities as a result of RTA. These injuries and deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) have immense influence on victims' families, employment and communities they belong, whose lives are often changed irreversibly by these calamities. Currently, road traffic casualties rank 9th in the “Global Burden of Diseases” but expected to become the 3rd leading cause of death and disability by the year 2020 except fresh, effective and efficient safety actions are engaged (WHO, 2013) World report on vehicular accidents showed that the number of road traffic injuries has continued to rise in the whole world, but there has been an overall downward trend in road traffic deaths in high-income countries since the 1970s and an increase in many of the low-income and middle-income countries. Deaths related to vehicular accidents are predicted to increase by 83% in low-income and middle-income countries and to decrease by 27% in high-income countries. 90% of road traffic deaths occurred in low-income and middle-income countries, where 81% of the world’s population live and own about 20% of the world’s vehicles. (Margie Peden, 2004).