IGP: Traffic police traffic accidents down 10 percent during Chinese New York period, fatalities and deaths down | Halek Hossain

 

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Rajaruddin Hussein at the Chinese New Year Op Selamat 23 appreciation ceremony at Persada Plus in Petaling Jaya on February 4, 2025. Photo by Yusuf Mat Isa

Author: Halek Hossain

Tuesday, 04 February 2025 2:20 PM MYT

PETALING JAYA, February 4 - Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Rajaruddin Hussein said today that a total of 7,8a82 traffic accidents were recorded during Op Selamat 23, which was held from January 28 to February 2 - a decrease of 902 incidents during the same campaign last year.

He added that this was a 10 per cent decrease compared to the 8,784 incidents recorded during the same campaign in 2024.

“The number of fatal accidents has also decreased, with 64 incidents recorded compared to 104 incidents in 2024.

“Similarly, the number of deaths has decreased, with 66 deaths reported compared to 117 incidents in 2024,” he said in his speech at the Op Selamat 23 commendation ceremony, which coincided with the Chinese New Year, here today.

He said that according to statistics, the number of deaths of motorcyclists and rear-end riders is the highest, totaling 47.

However, he said that this represents a decrease compared to Op Selamat 21, where 82 people were killed.

In a separate incident, he said that Op Selamat 23 issued a total of 124,286 summonses, while 183,033 summonses were issued during Op Selamat 21.

“This reduction clearly reflects the growing awareness and understanding of road safety regulations among the public,” he added.

Rajaruddin added that the police, through the Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department, have identified 407 hotspot locations on federal roads, state roads, municipal roads and other locations and 76 black spot locations nationwide.

He added that the flow of vehicles across the country has increased significantly, which is believed to be influenced by the number of registered vehicles, totaling 36.6 million vehicles as of January 2025.

“This increase was also due to the taking advantage of the 50 percent toll discount during the 2025 Chinese New Year celebrations, which contributed to the increase in vehicle volume,” he said.