http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/...rticle_id=50568

Tet accidents claim 265 lives in Vietnam -- report



Agence France-Presse
Last updated 12:57pm (Mla time) 02/20/2007


HANOI -- A total of 265 people were killed and more than 300 others injured in traffic accidents in Vietnam during celebrations of Tet, or Lunar New Year, state media said Tuesday.

The death toll was 100 higher than last year, with the number of accidents particularly high in the capital Hanoi and southern Ho Chi Minh City, the Tuoi Tre daily reported, citing police ministry figures.

Millions of people flooded Vietnam's road network to visit loved ones during weekend New Year celebrations, which began on Saturday.

Road accidents are the leading cause of death in the communist state, which has an appalling traffic safety record, mainly because of widespread disregard for regulations and speed limits.

Road safety experts say fatal accidents increased more than fourfold in the past decade to almost 13,000 deaths annually. At least 36 people die on Vietnam's roads every day.

people need to follow rules and regulations. their negligence is another's life.

The government needs to take drastic steps to enforce road safety. This is getting to be a bad "Road Warrior" movie.

this is nothing new in vietnam it happens every year... my aunt and uncle died on new years from traffic accident and when i was visiting vietnam i saw at least 10 accidents.

but vietnam does need to have better road safety regulations

It's either a free-for-all or a demolition derby out there. Safety regulations, including better safety regulations, don't mean squat unless they are enforced.

yea i completely agree, and mostly anyone can even drive without licence

.. and considering how weak our social safety net is, I'd like to see every motorist insured, too.

It seems that government officials is sitting on their hands too long when it comes to transport safety, too little is being done.

One of the problem is that the road and the highway are too small for the amount of vehicle that move in and out of the city. I even heard that during the night, the truck drivers drive very fast so they can deliver the merchandise to the store on time. So they very much disregard for safety of others on the road. Hit and run happen very often.

We need to improve the legal system, so that people who engage in unsafe driving can be sued and taken apart in court.

haha thats so rite 7 scooters in one lane and then theres going into the backlanes with vans and scooters at the same time. and those taxi/vans that cram tons of people in for more money for the trip

Make sure you wear your helmets when you ride motorbike in Vietnam.

We need better infrastructure, and well thought out road designs.

there are ! but because ....
....authorising governing bodies has put ½ the money in their pocket
....building contractors merely spend ½ the money given to them for materials,other half in the poket
....workers theiving materials from site
....locals using the unfinnished road

the projects could never be properly done

I just came back from HCM city. My first time riding the scooter and my first time riding in VN, I gotta admit it was easy and fun. Lucky, I had a few misses of anything more serious. Just take it slow and concentrate and you should be fine. During my one month stay, I only saw 2 accidents that were very bad.

out of all my visits to motherland, i saw hardly any accos...i witness a very freak horrificaccidents and some cause by the riders stupidity
i even took road trips from mong cai - hanoi and back a couple of times ,years ago ...once in the middle of nowhere,my front tyre blew sending me to to deck,after waiting on the road for half an hour til a xe om came by and pulled me to the next resident on the road where they helped me mend the tyre
back in 01 i was there for 3 months ,bought my own bike (yamaha Z125) ..and sold when left
i would and will one day do north -south trip on a bigger bike tho

The government had done alot for road safety ,its the people whos gotta follow the rules. I've seen over the years ,they've manage to (i would say completely) stop street racing , cracking down on unreg vehicles , enforcing helmet , no trio riding ect..ect

Brother Jimmy,

How much did you pay for the Yamaha Z125? Do you have a picture of it?

i paid 38 million (they'd just came out back then) ..i got 33 mil when i was going
sorry..i have hardly any fotos of my travellings

They should issue traffic tickets; it'll surely make the people obey the rules bc of $$$$

build public transports!