Better roads can increase the risks of AIDS transmission just as they can bring wealth and hope for local residents, the Asia Development Bank (ADB) warned in a study published Friday.

The Manila-based regional lender said the connection between AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is so well-established that these diseases are sometimes referred to as "highway diseases."

It said mobile men, such as construction workers and truck drivers who have little AIDS prevention knowledge and are away from their families, are more likely to engage in high risk behaviors.

The study cited an example of India, in which HIV prevalence rates along one particular route were found 16 times higher than the national average. And a national surveillance study of Bangladesh found that HIV prevalence rates are highest among long-distance truck drivers.

These men who contracted HIV virus through either sex intercourses with prostitutes or intravenous drug taking then further spread the deadly virus to their wives and girl friends, the study said.

ADB said today it has incorporated AIDS prevention in all its projects but will search for more effective and thorough prevention measures that can significantly reduce the AIDS prevalence rates in its transport projects. These measures will also include education programs and clinical tests and treatments.

It also urged the health and transport authorities of Asian countries to take the lead in fighting AIDS in the transport sector.

The United Nations estimates 5.4 million people live with HIV/AIDS in the Asia-Pacific region, with nearly a million new infections in the past two years, and with injecting drug use the main driver of the epidemic, the study said.

(Agencies via Xinhua News Agency February 29, 2008)