Study on transport safety perspectives in Bangladesh through comparative analysis of roadway, railway and waterway accidents

Abstract

The present study attempts to analyze the transport safety perspectives in Bangladesh, to highlight and compare the dimensions and striking characteristics of the accident problems of three major modes of transport i.e. road, rail and waterway. Available accidents data collected from the relevant sources have been analyzed in this study. Analysis identified the accident characteristics and observed their pattern for the three modes. A comparative accident study was performed for the period of 2008-2014. Out of 18771 accidents, 87% occurred on roads, 12% on railways and only 1% on waterways. 93% casualties took place on roads, 3% on railways and 4% on waterways. So, road is found to be the most hazardous mode in terms of accident frequency and casualty. Comparison also focused on other parameters like day, month, accident rate, fatality index and festival period of year. Finally, based on the findings from the comparative analysis, a number of recommendations have been made for improving transport safety in Bangladesh and for further research and investigations.