Manama: The total number of deaths by traffic accidents in Qatar in the first six months of the year has slightly decreased compared with that of the same period in 2009, traffic authorities have said.
According to the latest figures, 101 people died in road accidents in the Arabian Gulf in 2010; down from 104 last year.
A vast majority of the fatalities occurred in accidents resulting from over-speeding, while two people died after drivers broke traffic lights, traffic department officials, quoted by Qatari daily The Peninsula, said.
The drop in the death toll in the first half of 2009 was the result of preventive measures taken by the traffic department and a series of road safety awareness drives.
Overall, the number of road accidents fell by 9.6 per cent in the first half of 2010, to 2,319 from 2,564 in the corresponding period in 2009.
The incidence of drivers breaking traffic lights has come down by 20 per cent in the first six months of 2010, in comparison to the corresponding period last year.
In 96.2 per cent of the accidents, no injuries were reported, while those accidents causing minor injuries accounted for 1.8 per cent of the total.
Accidents that caused severe injuries accounted for three per cent, while those that resulted in deaths had a one per cent share in the total.
Overall traffic violations are showing a downward trend in the country, said a department official.
The number of traffic-related court cases also dropped significantly to 37.7 per cent, in the first half of this year compared to the first half of 2009, going down from 3,984 in the first six months of last year, to 2,482 this year.
