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<TD class=news width="50%"><FONT size=2>August 09, 2006 </FONT><A
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<P><FONT size=3><B>Malaysia Ranks 30th Among Countries In Fatal Road
Accidents</B></FONT></P>
<P class=news_summ align=justify><B></B></P>
<P class=news align=justify>PUTRAJAYA, Aug 9 (Bernama) -- The United Nations has
ranked Malaysia 30th among countries with the highest number of fatal road
accidents, registering an average of 4.5 deaths per 10,000 registered
vehicles.<BR><BR>"I am not happy with that position. We want to bring the
fatality rate down by 2010," Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy told
reporters after his ministry's post-Cabinet meeting Wednesday.<BR><BR>He said
the ministry has prepared a five-year plan to reduce the rate.<BR><BR>Chan
blamed the high road accident fatality rate on the large number of motorcycles
on Malaysian roads, at 60 per cent of the total registered vehicles.<BR><BR>He
said most fatal accidents in the country involved motorcyclists.<BR><BR>Chan was
responding to a statement issued by Hong Kong's Department of Transport which
placed Kuala Lumpur on top of 20 world cities with the highest number of fatal
road accidents.<BR><BR>The department's statement, carried by a local Chinese
daily yesterday, stated that its survey found that Kuala Lumpur registered an
average of 194 deaths in road accidents per one million population.<BR><BR>The
statement did not name the other 19 cities.<BR><BR>"It is misleading. The
statement is very bias as we don't know what criteria they used in their
survey," he added.<BR><BR>Chan said based on the data obtained from the Kuala
Lumpur traffic police, an average of 148 deaths per one million population were
recorded in 2005.<BR><BR>"The criteria measuring the fatality rate per one
million population is not widely used as most countries adopt the formula of
fatality based on per 10,000 registered vehicles," he said.<BR><BR>-- BERNAMA
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