Following the deaths of 90 people in nine major road accidents in just over seven days, the Chinese Ministry of Public Security is advising local authorities to improve road safety across the country. .

The latest and largest accident occurred yesterday in Luliang County, southwest China's Yunnan Province. A coach collided with a minibus and resulted in the deaths of 21 people and 34 were injured. 

Earlier yesterday another accident in Zhongning County, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, killed 12 people and injured 15 when a coach collided with a train at 2:45 PM. At press time the injured continued to receive treatment in Zhongning People's Hospital. Investigations are under way.

Ministry figures show that the number of major road accidents where at least five people had been killed reached 180 in the first half of the year. This is up 8.4 percent over the same period last year.

"Speeding and overloading are the major causes," Wang Jinbiao, deputy-director of the ministry's traffic administrative bureau said at a Beijing press conference yesterday.

Accidents caused by speeding or driving on the wrong side of the road have claimed the lives of 12,790 people which accounts for 30.5 percent of the total deaths in the first half of the year.

Among the 26 most serious accidents, each of which killed at least 10 people, speeding was the cause of 10 of the tragedies, according to the ministry.

Dangerous road sections without safety barriers have also been the locations of frequent accidents. Nineteen out of the 26 fatal accidents involved vehicles coming off high roads.

To reduce the number of major road accidents in the rest of this year, especially during the summer when more vehicles and passengers are on the road, the ministry has launched a three-month road safety campaign in the nine provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions which have witnessed the most accidents. They are Fujian, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, Chongqing and Guangxi.

Roads with poor surfaces will be repaired and dangerous sections will be equipped with safety barriers, the ministry said.

While the actual number of recorded road accidents in the first six months of this year is 190,270, which is down 14.3 percent year-on-year, Wang said a "very tough task" lay ahead during the rest of the summer.

Fatigue and anxiety resulting from high temperatures and a growing number of travelers are all contributing factors to road accidents, he said.

Records covering the past five years show that July has an average of 52,803 road accidents with a death toll of about 8,000. On average 267 people die daily on the roads during this month.

To avoid accidents the ministry has offered some safety tips:

Check a vehicle's circuit system, tyres and brakes regularly to avoid mechanical failure in hot weather

Be familiar with the route and pay attention to weather forecasts

Do not board unlicensed or overloaded vehicles

Report cases of drink driving or speeding to local police

Dial 122 and 120 for help in the event of a road accident

(China Daily July 12, 2006)