Deaths On the Road: Georgia Leads European Countries
Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia told the FINANCIAL that 5482 car accidents were recorded in 2009. 8324 people were injured as the result. 80 % of all accidents were recorded in Georgia’s capital Tbilisi . Police imposed 430040 fines last year.
Within the last three months (June, July, August) 169,914 drivers were fined by Patrols; 7,655 for non-seat belt wearing (153,100 GEL - with the old tariffs); 6,321 for speeding (126,420 GEL); 12,366 - drunk driving (2,473,200 GEL - with old tariffs); and the rest for other infringements. (source: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia)
The penalty on all driving infringements doubled last month.
Georgian Parliament now is considering new bill introducing the wearing of seatbelts as compulsory in cities.
In addition the throwing of rubbish from out of a vehicle will result in a 200 GEL fine from now on.
C-T Park has also doubled the parking fee for cars as drivers now have to pay 50 GEL instead of what was 25 GEL.
“Accidents caused by driving under the influence of alcohol and speeding are the most common,” said Ekaterine Laliashvili, Director of the Partnership for Road Safety Foundation.
As Laliashvili told The FINANCIAL, most drivers ignored the seatbelt rule in 2007, but once Traffic Patrol started tight monitoring of the situation (as well as increasing penalties), the number of deaths drastically fell.
Partnership for Road Safety was established in late 2006 in Georgia with the support of the FIA Foundation, British Council, and national organizations concerned with the growing number of road traffic accidents.
“We are contributing to the popularization of seatbelt wearing, and giving information about it to drivers. As the stats show 30% of road accidents are as a result of speeding. That’s why we conducted research about drivers’ attitude towards it, and have gradually observed that they are changing their attitudes toward wearing seatbelts,” said Ekaterine Laliashvili.
“Driving in the city with seatbelts fastened is very important as it keeps drivers safe, even at 30 km/h. As international practice shows, seat belts safeguard 40/60% of lives from fatality when driving,” Ekaterine Laliashvili said to The FINANCIAL.
Within the last three months (June, July, August) 169,914 drivers were fined by Patrols; 7,655 for non-seat belt wearing (153,100 GEL - with the old tariffs*); 6,321 for speeding (126,420 GEL); 12,366 - drunk driving (2,473,200 GEL - with old tariffs); and the rest for other infringements. (*source: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia)
From 1 August, 2010, almost all of the penalties have doubled: Crossing a red light will cost one 50 GEL; driving with no license - 500 GEL primarily; driving drunk or under the influence of narcotics - 500 GEL; not wearing a seat belt - 40 GEL, etc. (source: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia)
Globally, road traffic crashes already kill more people than Malaria and typically cost countries between one and two percent of their GDP (WHO estimates).
There were 1.2 million deaths in 2009 (source: WHO Global Status report).
By 2030 road deaths will be ranked number 5 as a leading cause of death. Over 90% of these deaths occur in low and middle-income countries, which have only 48% of the world’s vehicles. Almost half of the deaths are ‘vulnerable road users’ (pedestrians, cyclists, non-motorised vehicle users) who are often the poorest members of society without insurance cover.
World Bank in Georgia also supports safe driving with its activities, hosting various workshops in 2008-09.
First modern three point seat belt used in most consumer vehicles today was patented in 1951 by the Americans Roger W. Griswold and Hugh De Haven. In 1970, the state of Victoria, Australia, passed the first law worldwide making seat belt wearing compulsory for drivers and front-seat passengers.
As Nino Moroshkina, Health Specialist at WB Georgia, told The FINANCIAL, WB supports GoG’s efforts in road safety in general, though we don’t have a stand-alone project. The Ministry for Infrastructure and the WB office in Tbilisi hosted a road safety workshop in 2008-09. The aim of the workshop was to contribute international experience and ideas on how to reduce the number of deaths on the road, also to the draft road safety action plan prepared by the Government for the next 5 years. The plan was focusing on identifying the actions needed by government departments and others to make Georgia’s roads safe for all.
“I know that the road safety situation in the country is worsening, 1,213 people died on the roads in 2008. Relative to the vehicle fleet, this is ten times worse than the best countries for road safety in the world (Netherlands, Sweden & the UK) and is 43% more deaths than five years ago. This also reflects the global importance of road safety as a development issue,” said Moroshkina.
“Our portfolio is quite rich in terms of infrastructure development projects. There are several ongoing road projects, one of which has been upgraded in size to over 300 million USD, with the last largest 147 million USD Third East-West Highway Project signed in 2008,” said Nino Moroshkina to The FINANCIAL.
