BENTONG: The use of mobile phones while driving and riding has been identified as the main cause of road accidents in the country.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the ministry would ask the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS) to conduct a study to show that it was a serious matter that needed to be given attention by road users.
“Actually the phone has changed our lives tremendously with the creation of various applications such as WhatsApp and multimedia messages.
“It has also changed the question of road safety and can become very dangerous when we use it to surf the websites, take pictures or find locaitons while driving a car or riding a motorcycle,” he told reporters after launching the 18th Yamaha Balik Kampung Road Safety campaign here today.
Also present were Road Safety Department director-general Datuk Ariffin Che Mat and Hong Leong Yamaha Motor director Datuk Jim Khor.
Liow said the campaign’s theme ‘Focus on the road not on the hand’ was timely with the current scenario as a study conducted by MIROS revealed that 80 per cent of accidents were caused by human negligence, including the use of mobile phones.
He said the ministry through the relevant agencies would set up a working committee at the district level to ensure all road safety campaigns would be implement effectively right down to the grassroots.
The ministry would also cooperate with the Education Ministry to give awareness on road safety regulations among students, he said. --BERNAMA