The speed limit in school zones will soon be lowered to 30 km/h from the current 40 km/h limit in order to lower th rate of road accidents in these zones, said deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, reported The Star.
On average, 67 people die annually in school zones, according to the deputy prime minister, and that 322 road accidents were reported in school zones nationwide last year, according to police statistics.
The deputy prime minister also cited international research as having shown that every 1 km/h of speed reduced would drop the fatality rate by 4-5%, and a speed reduction of 5% could reduce fatal accidents by 30%.
“A working committee will have to be formed to decide on the timing and road stretches at school zones where the new speed limit will be implemented. I was also told by the police that road accidents had risen by 8.39% compared with the same period last year. The approach we need to take to curb accidents is not merely by creating awareness and education, but also by intensifying enforcement,” Ahmad Zahid said.
The deputy prime minister cited police records as showing that of the 267,013 road crashes and 2,742 fatalities recorded until May 2024, more than two-thirds of the victims were motorcyclists and pillion riders.
The Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS) proposed a 30 km/h speed limit for built-up zones in May 2021, and proposed the lower speed limit for another 10 roads in Kuala Lumpur city in June 2022. At the time, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) had already imposed a 30 km/h speed limit in some school zones, said MIROS chairman Wong Shaw Voon.
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