Less blood-thirty roads as Nigeria records reduced auto crashes in 2024
By Anthony Maliki, Abuja
Available data shows that lives lost in road mishaps dropped in 2024 compared to 2023 even as the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) Shehu Mohammed officially assumed duty just seven months ago.
He was appointed on May 20, 2024 by President Bola Tinubu but resumed office on May 27, 2024.
According to data sourced by DAYLIGHT REPORTERS, there were 2766 fatalities in the first and second quarters of 2024 with figures of third and fourth quarters still in the works.
In the first quarter, there were 2,662 crashes giving a 2.02% decrease from the fourth quarter of 2023 and a 3.00% deduction from first quarter of 2023.
Specifically, in the first quarter of 2024, there were 1,471 deaths, with 79.50% males or 1,169 and females accounting for 302 or 20.50% while those injured are 8,659 comprising 6,749 males and 1,910 females.
There were 2,404 crashes in the second quarter of this year with a significant 9.69% downturn from the first quarter and a huge drop of 18.98% from second quarter of 2023. Fatalities are made up of 1,295 with males making 1,076 or 82.45% and females 16.55% or 219.
On the whole, there were 8,024 injuries recorded in the second quarter of 2024 with 5,837 males involved and 2,187 females.
In 2023, 10, 617 road traffic crashes were recorded with 5,081 fatalities and 31,874 injured.
In the 2023 data, DAYLIGHT REPORTERS gathered, that there were 2,187 crashes in the third quarter with 908 deaths and 6,041 injured while in the fourth quarter, there were 2,717 auto crashes with 1,323 fatalities and 9,116 sustaining injuries.
According to the statistics, the North-Central and South-West regions of the country recorded the highest number of accidents and fatalities during this period in both 2023 and 2024.
On December 16, 2024, Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed reaffirmed the FRSC’s commitment to ensuring safer road environments during the yuletide, emphasizing the deployment of personnel and resources to manage increased traffic and reduce accidents.
He advised motorists to adhere strictly to road traffic rules to ensure a peaceful and hitch-free Christmas celebration, reiterating the FRSC’s dedication to road safety during the festive season.
These activities reflect Corps Marshal Mohammed’s proactive approach to road safety management during a period of heightened travel across Nigeria.
