Ilocos road crash incidents up

MANILA, Philippines — Vehicular accidents in Ilocos region are on the rise, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said over the weekend.

Speaking at the “Kapihan sa DOH” on Friday, acting PNP deputy regional director for operations Col. Christopher Acop said a total of 1,521 vehicular traffic incidents (VTIs) occurred from Jan. 1 to May 9.

“We had an average of 63 VTIs last year. For this year, from January to April alone, 69 VTIs have already been recorded. And last week, the figure increased to 83,” Acop said.

He said that last year, a total of 3,257 vehicular accidents were recorded in the region.

The PNP established more police posts and deployed police mobile patrols to curb the rising number of VTIs.

“They will be patrolling our streets and roads 24/7. This is intended to deter vehicular mishaps as police visibility discourages people from violating traffic laws,” Acop said.

Among the provinces in the region, Pangasinan recorded the highest number of VTIs with 984 followed by La Union with 303, Ilocos Sur with 159 and Ilocos Norte 75.

Motorcycles topped the list of VTIs with 1,123 followed by four-wheel vehicles with 996, tricycles 366 and six-wheelers 75.

Road accidents involving male drivers accounted for 332 VTIs compared to 167 involving female drivers.

Most cases, or 1,894 road accidents involved drivers with licenses, while 516 were without licenses.

Patricia Mendoza, transportation regulation officer of the Land Transportation Office, said the LTO regional office has instituted reforms in the processing of driver’s license.

“Everyone will undergo seminars on traffic laws, rules and regulations on the use of road including education on road signs,” Mendoza said.