220 people lost lives on Jordan’s roads so far this year — Traffic Department chief

AMMAN — Director of Traffic Department Brig. Firas Duwairi on Thursday said that 220 people have died in road accidents in Jordan since the beginning of the year.

During a radio talk show hosted by the Public Security Directorate Radio Station, Duwairi said that 98.8 per cent of traffic accidents are caused by human error.

“Human lives are sacred and we will exert all available efforts to reduce the numbers of road accidents in the Kingdom,” the traffic director said.

“We are working on a strategic plan in cooperation with our partners to address road accidents in the Kingdom,” Duwairi told the radio station.

One of the main goals is to increase the number of traffic patrols and officers on Jordan’s streets, Duwairi said.

“We are also working on increasing the number of secret police on the roads, increasing CCTV road surveillance and following up on social media platforms,” he added.

Recently, the PSD-affiliated  Central Traffic Department (CTD) launched a campaign to raise motorists’ awareness of the importance of wearing a seatbelt.

Last year, Jordan witnessed over 170,000 road accidents, resulting in 562 deaths, according to traffic officials.

In 2021, around 160,000 road accidents occurred on the Kingdom’s roads resulting in 589 deaths.

In addition, 11,241 people were injured, including 737 with serious injuries, as a result of the traffic accidents in 2021.

 Last year, traffic officials announced that the CTD will adopt several measures to curb road accidents including the reinforcement of the Traffic Point System that was published in the Official Gazette in early 2018.

The step, according to traffic officials, was meant to curb road accidents and as an attempt to minimise human and financial losses.

The new system stipulates that motorists who commit certain traffic violations will have a file at the Traffic Department that includes their driving record, the points accumulated and traffic violations. 

Motorists who accumulate less than 16 points, according to the new point system, will have the option of attending a rehabilitation course at the Jordan Traffic Institute, which they will be required to pay for.

Once they complete the course, eight points will be deducted from their driving record, according to the regulations.