…Amid Lower Road Traffic Crashes Q-o-Q
Despite sustained efforts by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to ensure that drivers and other road users in the country maintain safety standards in travels across road networks in the country, Nigeria road accidents claimed 1,347 lives even as thousands of commuters suffered injuries in the first quarter of this year.
The latest data published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday showed that in the quarter under review, a total of 2,720 road traffic crashes were recorded between January and March, representing an increase of 2.64 per cent compared to the 2,650 crashes recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.
Although the data reflected a marginal decline of 0.40 per cent when compared with the 2,731 crashes reported in the last quarter of 2025, the casualties were higher, underscoring persistent safety concerns on Nigerian roads.
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According to the statistics agency, serious crashes accounted for the largest share of accidents during the quarter, with 1,761 cases recorded nationwide, followed by fatal crashes with 714 incidents, while minor crashes stood at 245 cases.
When the deaths are analyzed on gender basis, the report showed that out of the 1,347 persons killed in the road traffic crashes in Q1 this year, 1,076 were males, representing 79.88 per cent of total fatalities, while 271 females accounted for 20.12 per cent.
Similarly, males dominated the 8,575 injured victims with 6,547 men sustaining varying degrees of injuries, accounting for 76.35 per cent of the total injured persons, while 2,028 women were injured, representing 23.65 per cent.
The report also reflected a slight increase in the number of vehicles involved in crashes nationwide, totalling 4,078 vehicles in the quarter under review, higher than the 4,059 vehicles recorded in the preceding quarter.
A further breakdown of the road traffic accidents on zonal basis showed that North-Central zone was the worst-hit region in terms of accident frequency with 752 crashes, followed closely by the South-West with 699 cases. The South-South recorded the least number of crashes with 137 cases.
However, in terms of casualties, the North-West topped the chart with 2,675 casualties, followed by the North-Central with 2,544 casualties, while the South-South again recorded the lowest figure with 402 casualties.
The latest figures come amid growing concerns over reckless driving, poor road conditions, excessive speeding, overloading, and weak compliance with traffic regulations across the country.
