Road accident figures improving

PHUKET: A total of 855 people were killed or injured in traffic accidents between September 20 and October 20, according to statistics from the Wachira, Thalang and Patong government hospitals. Of the 12 fatalities during the period, nine involved motorcycles while the remaining three involved cars. The death rate was lower than the average per month for the year to date, which was 15.9. Of the injured, 798 were motorcycle riders, while 45 were in cars. These figures, too, were lower than the monthly averages for the year so far, which were 843 and 101.6 respectively. The number of traffic fatalities for the January-October period has fallen steadily each year from 235 in 1997 to 190 last year and 159 this year.