By MOSHOOD ISAMOTU

By the time the number of road crash fatalities that occurred across Nigeria during the 2025 year-end activities to date is finally computed, it will be gut-wrenching, eerie, and blood-chilling. From Jigawa to Abakaliki, Omu-Ekiti, and Itu in Akwa Ibom State, and indeed across the country, it was as if the roads were hypovolemic, egregiously seeking blood to quench their thirst like vampires. And they satisfied themselves with the blood of the young, the old, including the fetus. It was as if the god of the road was angry and moved its headquarters to Nigeria, turning the celebratory mood of ‘Detty December’ into a grief-stricken season for many families who had to celebrate the season of joy with the loss of loved ones.

It was really shocking reading about mass deaths from several lone and multiple road crashes during the Yuletide, largely and sadly, attributable to preventable human factors. The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) reported in November 2025, while commencing the annual ‘Ember’ months road safety campaign, that between January and September 2025, 6,858 road crashes occurred, resulting in 3,433 deaths, and 22,162 injuries nationwide. The figures are sure to become alarming with the December fatalities.

While the road crash involving the global Boxing Champion, Anthony Joshua, with the loss of his two friends in a road crash dominated the media, however, hundreds of families suffered the same fate during the festivities, and now live with emotional ache and loss, which may never heal.

Before now, Nigeria had bad figures when it comes to road accidents; however, the reported cases in the last month call for concern by stakeholders. It is a disaster scale that should not be repeated. Governments at various levels would need to reassess their existing strategies for preventing and managing road accidents.

The world over, road accidents remain the leading cause of death among young people aged 15 and 29, costing governments globally about 3% of GDP every year. Each year, globally, more than 1.3 million people die, and tens of millions are injured in road crashes. The World Bank disclosed that between 2015 and 2030, injuries resulting from road accidents are likely to cost the global economy US$1.8 trillion, including medical expenses, lost productivity, and emergency response. Sadly, “Despite this massive – and largely preventable – human and economic toll,” the organization noted, “action to combat this global challenge has been insufficient.”

The 2025 Africa Status Report on Road Safety reveals that, despite having only 3% of the global vehicle fleet, Africa accounts for 24% of global road fatalities with 259,601 deaths annually. Nigeria has a fair share of that figure.

The Report puts Nigeria as having the second-highest road accident record in the world, and the highest in Africa. Nigeria is also said to have the highest road injury death rate (52.4 per 100,000 people) of any country globally. These rates are more than 15 times the death rates in Sweden, the UK, and the Netherlands, which have the lowest death rates globally from road accidents. Also, the World Health Organization (WHO) 2018 Global Status Report on Road Safety estimated road traffic fatalities in Nigeria at 39,802, while the rate per 100,000 deaths stood at 21.4. The organization noted that one (1) out of every four (4) road accidents in Africa emanated from Nigeria. Also, the record shows that the survival rate in Nigerian road accidents is a paltry 52%.

For the Nigerian government, road accident is a major concern, and this has inspired some policy formulation and the creation of federal and sub-national agencies to manage road safety concerns. However, the effectiveness of these initiatives has been less impressive, given the current spate of road accidents.

The causes of road accidents are no more of a scientific puzzle. They are documented as mostly preventable human factors. This realization inspired the formulation of “Ten Golden Rules” for road safety by the International Federation of Automobile Clubs (FIA) (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) in 2015 to support the UN’s Decade of Action for Road Safety, by promoting basic, universal rules like wearing seatbelts, obeying speed limits, avoiding distractions, and driving sober. Many nations, including Nigeria, have adapted versions of the rule.

Road crashes are overwhelmingly caused by human error, as cited in over 90% of cases, with speeding, distraction (phones), drunk/impaired driving, and failing to look properly being top factors, while vehicle faults (brakes, tires) and environmental issues (road conditions) contribute much less, according to various global studies and transport authorities like WHO and Transport Scotland.

FRSC also confirmed the global findings, noting that speeding violations consistently rank as the top factor, accounting for over 50% of crashes, loss of control & dangerous driving as major contributors, often listed alongside speeding. Vehicle Factors: tyre burst (up to 54%), and faulty brakes (around 22.5%). It clearly stated that human error, broadly, over 90% of crashes stem from distracted driving, fatigue, and impaired judgment, according to general studies. Heavy-duty vehicles: overloaded trucks and heavy-duty vehicles are frequently cited risk factors, as noted in a 2024 FRSC data analysis.

However, some nations have done well in their fight for safer roads through public safety campaigns extolling sticking to speed limits, wearing seatbelts, and not drinking and driving. Sweden is a good reference for road transportation safety globally. In 1997, Sweden introduced the Zero Vision policy that aimed to reduce the number of road accident fatalities to zero by 2020. To achieve this, the country implemented new road designs that involved the construction of more roundabouts, fewer intersections, and a reduction of vehicle turns where people cross streets, and strict enforcement of traffic laws. More pedestrian bridges were built, bicycles were separated from oncoming traffic, and strict policing led to the reduction of the number of drink-driving offences. From that initiative, road deaths have almost halved in Sweden. While Sweden’s progress looks dramatic, it however, struggled to meet its zero-road accident goal. The target date for zero death has been pushed back from 2020 to 2050.

Today, the Swedish example has been held up as a model by many nations, such as Canada, Norway, various US states, and some European Union countries. It is suggested that if more nations can replicate Sweden’s template, many lives will be saved in road accidents globally.

The long-standing road safety challenges in Nigeria are a public knowledge – excessive speeding and reckless overtaking, behaviourial issues (distraction, fatigue, overloaded vehicles), poor road conditions, and unroadworthy vehicles. Like in the rest of the world, the constant culprit has been human error, which, in summary, is pinned to drivers’ recklessness and bad behavior on the road.

Shehu Mohammed, Corps Marshal, FRSC Abuja Command, while flagging off the 2025 Ember Months Public Enlightenment and Sensitisation Campaign re-emphaised that driver’s fatigue, over speeding, overloading, use of phones while driving, conveyance of passengers in haulage vehicles, and carrying fuel in plastic containers are major causes of road crashes, stressing that most incidents are preventable if drivers adhere to safety rules.

The campaign, however, urged passengers to take more responsibility for their safety. This reinforces the fact that, as human factors remain the dominant cause of crashes on our highways, both the drivers and passengers should be actively involved.

According to him, FRSC had mapped out holistic (pre- and during) measures to reduce crashes and fatalities during the period, including the deployment of personnel and special marshals across major highways, free vehicle checks, motor park rallies, and town hall meetings with transport unions, security agencies, and other stakeholders. These are comprehensive enough to deliver safer travels during the season. However, the effectiveness of these efforts is debatable given the alarming statistics on road fatalities during the period. This failure calls for interrogation among key stakeholders to ascertain the missing links.

Experts have identified rigorous tests for Nigerian drivers, as is done in Europe, to stem the tide of avoidable road crashes. Issuance of a driver’s license should be based on proper certification, and its renewal should be based on the past driving experience of the driver. An uncertified driver on an expressway is a disaster in motion.

Don’t drink and drive has been an age-long campaign for road safety. It is more relevant today than before. An unstable mind cannot deliver flawless driving. FRSC should randomly be able to stop vehicles on the expressway and test drivers for alcohol. A failed test should attract a severe penalty to send a signal to others. For sure, many Nigerian drivers will fail this test, and strict enforcement will be a significant step to control those deadly bad habits.

The Federal and state governments should also identify defective accident-prone spots nationwide and rectify them in phases, given a deadline. The losses incurred in those ugly spots over time are more than the cost of putting them in order.

To complement that, an effective policy on towing of breakdown vehicles, especially in accident-prone areas, should be implemented by states. Mr. Babajide Fashola achieved this while he was Lagos State Governor. For example, until a permanent solution is found, places like the notorious Otedola bridge, exiting Lagos on the Ibadan Expressway, should have a standby functional fire service, tow and ambulance vehicles to handle emergencies.

Special attention should also be directed to movements by long trucks in the metropolis. It is a death on wheels for trailers to carry unstrapped containers, competing for space with smaller vehicles. This has caused several fatalities and should be criminalized. Limiting the movement of trailers to the night period should be revisited and explored, too.

Certification of roadworthiness of vehicles should be taken seriously without making a mess of it, as it is being done now, which is just an avenue to rake in revenue for governments. Having only fit vehicles on the roads will go a long way in preventing road crashes, and offenders should be sanctioned prohibitively.

Over speeding is a great cause of accidents everywhere in the world, and any attempt to reduce road fatalities should prioritize its control. Deployment of technology facilities such as cameras and human resources for effective enforcement of over speeding on roads is very critical.

The campaign for responsible behavior on the road should be a culture that FRSC inculcates in the drivers and passengers, round be all year round and not just for the December season only.

Nigerian commuters should be involved in safety consciousness on the road, as the FRSC’s December campaign sloganized. Passengers should be able to caution, report reckless drivers to security agencies on the road, which should attract stiff sanctions, or take mass action against any recalcitrant driver. Since only the passengers will be with the drivers all through the journey, for commercial buses, they should play the role of policing the drivers by keeping a watchful eye on the speedometer and dangerous maneuvering. They should also sense when a driver is fatigued and needs some rest.

In addition, passengers can also play a role in casual checking of the fitness of the vehicle parts, such as tyres, before boarding.

They need to be active as the closest people at risk. Their silence can’t be golden when drivers are taking them to the undertakers.

•Moshood Isamotu is a Lagos-based public affairs commentator.

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