Speaking in a press conference on the occasion of the national day of transportation safety, Mohammad Bokharaee said that currently road accounts for 90% of the transfer of passengers and goods, and issues related to the transportation should be considered as one of the important factors of development.

He went on to say that the issue of boosting transportation safety and protecting human, social and economic assets as well as reducing driving accidents is considered as a big problem and national concern, and for this reason,  April 27 has been named as the national day of transportation safety and it is good opportunity all responsible bodies in the traffic and transportation industry in cooperation with the public and creative a nationwide and inclusive current to focus on the dangers and irreparable consequences of the driving accidents.

Bokharaee then pointed to the share of the transportation in the national economy, adding that today transportation and driving accidents have turned into a social and economic concern in the country.

He reiterated that the rate of road and driving accidents in Iran is 20% above the international average rate, adding that the country has reached a critical point regarding driving accidents and the society should be sensitive to this issue.

He pointed to the effective factors in the rise in number of the road accidents, adding that three factors of human force, road infrastructures and vehicles should be blamed 70% for the road accidents, adding that the low-cost and fastest  means for reducing the road accidents is culturalization among the people.

Bokharaee went on to say that bikers top the list of the road accident fatalities in the country and its number is considerable, and reiterated that bikers account for 25% of the road accident fatalities, and in order to reduce the accidents and fatalities, the Road Safety Supporters Society  pursues education, participation of the insurance companies and encouraging auto-makers not to produce unsafe vehicles.

He said currently some 3000 accident-prone areas have been identified in the country and they should be continuously reconstructed and reformed.  He noted that human force factor is still the main factor behind the road accidents and quality of the roads is just 10% behind accidents.

Then in the presser, head of Road Construction Companies Association Mr. Ali Azad blamed the quality of the asphalt in the roads, saying that in the past,  28m tons of asphalt sealer was usually used in the roads and today due to the rise in the length of the roads, some 9m tons of asphalt is used and this has lowered the quality of the roads in the country.

He stressed that roads and accident-prone areas are not the main problem in accidents but this is the drivers who should be blamed for accidents and human factor plays 70% role in the road accidents.

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With 181 fatalities, Fars ranked first, while Isfahan and Khorasan Razavi provinces ranked second and third in traffic-related fatalities with 140 and 131 deaths, respectively, he lamented.

Ardebil (16), Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari (17), and western Tehran (17) had the lowest death tolls in road crashes happened during the summer, he stated.

He went on to say that Hamedan province, with 22 casualties, ranked first with the highest increase in traffic fatalities, while Kohgiluyeh-Boyer Ahmad and Kerman provinces come next, ISNA reported on Wednesday.

Pointing out that in some provinces the number of people killed in accidents reduced during the three past months, he said that East Azarbaijan, Kordestan and Isfahan provinces had the highest decline in road deaths with 33, 22, and 22 victims, respectively.

“Through the summer traffic scheme began on June 10, aiming to increase road safety and reduce car crashes during holiday trips, we have monitored 300 kilometers of the roads nationwide,” he explained.

He went on to regret that Friday, September 20, was the deadliest day of the week; as some 16 percent of the total fatalities have lost their live on Fridays; while Saturdays have the lowest road deaths.

He explained that during the aforementioned period, 65 percent of people were killed immediately at the crash scene, while 5 percent of deaths happened on the way to hospitals, while the rest lost their live in medical centers.

July 16 was also the deadliest day of summer; as unfortunately 52 people killed in road crashes, he regretted.

During the second and third months of summer, average speeds on the roads increased by 0.2 and 0.7 percent, respectively, he concluded.

Every year the lives of approximately 1.35 million people worldwide are cut short as a result of a road traffic crashes, WHO reports. Between 20 and 50 million more people suffer non-fatal injuries, with many incurring a disability as a result of their injury.

WHO highlights that road traffic injuries can be prevented. Governments need to take action to address road safety in a holistic manner. This requires involvement from multiple sectors such as transport, police, health, education, and actions that address the safety of roads, vehicles, and road users.

Effective interventions include designing safer infrastructure and incorporating road safety features into land-use and transport planning, improving the safety features of vehicles, improving post-crash care for victims of road deaths in car crashes, setting and enforcing laws relating to key risks, and raising public awareness.

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But why the crash caused such a large explosion was not immediately clear. It also was not clear if the casualties were all from the vehicles.

Videos posted online showed fire tenders trying to control a massive fire that damaged several cars.

The cancer treatment facility was evacuated after the crash, which happened near the famed Tahrir Square.

The health ministry said the injured people were taken to hospitals for treatment.

Egypt’s public prosecutor is investigating the cause of the incident, sources told Reuters news agency. There was no official statement indicating that the explosion was an attack.

Sources told Al Jazeera that a team of prosecutors, criminal laboratory and bomb experts have arrived at the scene of the explosion.

Road accidents are common in Egypt. The country’s official statistics agency says 8,000 crashes last year caused more than 3,000 deaths and 12,000 injuries.

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Every day some 43 people die in road accidents and the number of those who sustain injuries are timed by 16, the Iranian Red Crescent Society Youth Organization has said.

Some 20 percent of female bread winners have lost their husbands in traffic accidents and some 60 percent of spinal cord injuries are caused in car crashes, Masoud Habibi regretted.

Majlis Research Center also known as Research Center of the Islamic Legislative Assembly is the research arm of the parliament.

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