Fifty-two people were killed and 431 others injured in 387 road accidents on the first day of the launch road safety campaign on Monday to coincide with Songkran festival.
The centre for the prevention and reduction of road accidents of the Department of Public Disasters Prevention and Mitigation, the main cause of the road accidents was speeding which accounted for 36.69 percent of the 387 accidents recorded on the first day followed by drunk driving which accounted for 26.87 percent of the accidents.
Motorcycles accounted for the bulk of the accidents representing 79.6 percent followed by pick-up trucks accounting for 10.20 percent of the accidents. 56.93 percent of the dead and injured victims were working people.
Chiang Mai topped the highest incidence of road accidents with 19 accidents followed by 6 in Prachin Buri.
The centre reported that a total of 2,128 road checkpoints were set up on Monday and over 65,000 officials were mobilized to keep check of traffic flow and inspection of vehicles.
A total of 528,903 vehicles were checked and, of these, 84,724 faced legal actions, including 25,651 cases of no driving licenses and 23,354 cases of riding with crash helmets.
Pol Lt-Gen Anan Srihirun, assistant national police chief, said police in the provinces were instructed to facilitate traffic flow and to ensure road safety today which is the last working day in anticipation of more people leaving Bangkok.
Mr Chatchai Promlert, chief of the Department for Public Disasters Prevention and Mitigation, said that as most holidaymakers would have reached their destinations in upcountry by tomorrow, provincial and local administrators had been instructed to tighten up the five measures introduced by the National
Council for Peace and Order, foremost of all is the measure to clamp down on reckless driving, speeding and drunk driving.
