LAHORE:
Road traffic accidents (RTCs) across Punjab have claimed 4,791 lives so far in 2025, a sharp 19% increase in fatalities from the previous year, despite a slower increase in the number of accidents, according to Rescue 1122 data.
According to annual statistics from emergency services, a total of 482,870 road accidents were reported in Punjab in 2025, resulting in nearly 570,000 injuries. In comparison, 467,561 accidents were recorded in 2024, which resulted in 4,139 deaths, while 420,387 accidents in 2023 cost the lives of 3,967 people.
The figures highlight a worrying trend: while road accidents increased by 5.8% in 2025 – significantly lower than the 11.9% increase seen in 2024 – the number of deaths increased disproportionately, indicating a greater severity of accidents.
Emergency Services Secretary Dr Rizwan Naseer expressed concern over the data while chairing an annual operational review meeting on road accidents.
“In Pakistan, a road accident occurs almost every minute and, tragically, the main victims are often the breadwinners of families,” he said, calling the situation in Punjab “extremely alarming”.
Dr Naseer noted that over 75% of fatal accidents involved motorcycles, highlighting the vulnerability of two-wheeler riders. He stressed that reducing the speed of motorcycles to 50 kilometers per hour could significantly reduce the number of injuries and deaths. “Each increase of one kilometer per hour increases the risk of a fatal accident by 4 to 5%,” he warned.
The meeting was attended by heads of different wings of the emergency services department, the provincial surveillance officer and district emergency officers (DEOs), who joined via video link.
Officials reviewed major emergencies, district-level performance, operational challenges, case studies and lessons learned during the year.
A briefing by the operations chief revealed that Lahore recorded the highest number of road accidents in 2025, with 88,743 cases, followed by Faisalabad (32,309) and Multan (29,804).
At the other end of the spectrum, Murree reported the lowest number of accidents at 1,889, while Attock recorded 3,748 and Jhelum 4,301.
Interestingly, despite high absolute figures, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Faisalabad all recorded a decline in road accidents compared to 2024. Accidents decreased by 5.85% in Lahore, 4.33% in Rawalpindi and 1.82% in Faisalabad.
However, the data showed an increase in RTCs in 34 other districts of Punjab.
An analysis of vehicle involvement found that motorcycles were responsible for 75% of all crashes. Cars accounted for 8.6%, rickshaws 4.7%, buses, trucks and vans 4.3%, while 7.4% concerned other types of vehicles.
Pedestrians were affected in 10.34% of road accidents, highlighting the risks faced by those walking on or near busy roads.
In terms of injuries, Rescue 1122 data showed that the majority of victims suffered fractures and head injuries. These included 39,250 cases of single fractures, 19,603 head injuries, 8,362 multiple fractures and 1,125 spinal cord injuries. Among the 569,901 people injured in road accidents, 80.6% were men and 19.4% women.
The data also showed a sharp increase in certain categories of accidents. Tractor-trolley accidents increased by 27%, followed by cars (17%), motorcycles (15%), buses (14%), rickshaws (13%) and trucks (10%).
Accidents involving vans saw a slight decrease of 2%.
The provincial secretary stressed the use of properly fastened helmets that do not obstruct vision or hearing and warned against risky practices such as women sitting sideways on motorcycles or wearing loose clothing that could get caught in the wheels.
