Japan's traffic deaths fall to record low in 2017
Xinhua,January 05, 2018 Adjust font size:
TOKYO, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- The number of people who died from traffic accidents in Japan dropped to a record low of 3,694 in 2017, Japan's National Police Agency said Thursday.
The figure, the lowest level since 1948 when such data were available, stood only one fifth of its peak of 16,765 in 1970, according to the agency.
The agency attributed the steady decline of death tolls to revised traffic laws, enhancement of traffic safety education, as well as improved road conditions and traffic guidance.
The agency, meanwhile, warned that despite the decline of the total death toll, the proportion of fatalities among elderly people has increased while the Japanese population continues aging.
In 2017, the number of people aged 65 or above who died from traffic accidents stood at 2,020, down by 118 from the previous year but accounting for 54.7 percent of the total traffic deaths.
The agency pledged to take more measures to tackle the issue and called upon the whole society to make concerted efforts to ensure traffic safety. Enditem