A total of 536 people were killed and 1,315 people injured in 939 road accidents across the country from January 1 to May 8, according to a National Police report.

During that period, the police stopped 77,288 vehicles that had violated the Road Traffic Law, including 56,679 motorcycles and 20,609 cars.

On May 8 alone, six road accidents occurred, killing five people and injuring three, two of whom were in severe in condition, the report said.

Heng Chan Theary, director of the National Police’s public order and traffic police department, vouched for the accuracy of these statistics as compiled from police reports nationwide.

“These figures are correct. The numbers are taken from our traffic officers,” he said.

The report said that on average, seven road accidents had happened per day with five people killed, despite the Covid-19 crisis and travel restrictions in some parts of the country, according to the report.

Kong Sovann, a public health specialist and the International Safety Foundation director, told The Post that road accidents deserve full attention just like the Covid-19 pandemic. He explained that traffic accidents can happen at any time and have killed far more people than Covid-19 has.

“We must tighten the laws focusing on three main at-risk factors – speeding, drunk driving and overtaking in dangerous conditions or stretches of the road, especially areas on the national roads with blind curves and roads in the provinces that are in poor condition as well as unmarked detours,” he said.

Sovann hoped there will be more awareness raising campaigns about the seriousness of the issue.

Promoting helmet wearing, cycler and pedestrian safety and respect for traffic lights and traffic signs would also help a great deal, he said.