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Nearly 300 families perish in road crashes in 6 years 10 months: RSF
UNB, Dhaka
Published: 08 Nov 2026, 01:43 PM
Road accidents have claimed nearly 300 lives over the past six years and 10 months, according to RSF.
Nearly 300 families have been completely wiped out in road accidents across Bangladesh over the past six years and 10 months, with an increasing number of crashes killing multiple members of the same family travelling together, according to a report by the Road Safety Foundation (RSF).
The report, covering the period from January 2020 to October 2026, found that entire families or several members of the same family were killed in accidents involving motorcycles, autorickshaws, private cars, microbuses, ambulances and buses.
The RSF prepared the report based on information published in nine national dailies, 17 online news portals, electronic media and its own data.
Motorcycle accidents accounted for a significant number of such fatalities. The report recorded 193 accidents in which husbands and wives were killed together, claiming 386 lives in total. Another 159 motorcycle accidents involving fathers and children claimed 318 lives.
Auto-rickshaw accidents were involved in 525 incidents in which multiple members of the same family were killed, with a total of 1,728 fatalities.
Of these, 211 accidents killed two family members each, 118 killed three, 92 killed four, 53 killed five, 38 killed six and 13 killed seven members of the same family.
In microbus accidents, 186 crashes involving multiple family members claimed 708 lives. Among them, 48 accidents killed two members of the same family, 46 killed three, 39 killed four, 28 killed five, 20 killed six, four killed 11 and one killed 14 members.
Private car accidents accounted for 108 such incidents, leaving 352 people dead.
Of these, 34 accidents killed two family members each, 31 killed three, 24 killed four and 19 killed five members.
The report also recorded 45 ambulance accidents involving multiple members of the same family, in which 162 people were killed. Eleven accidents killed two family members each, 15 killed three, nine killed four, seven killed five and three killed eight members.
In bus accidents, 32 incidents killed 85 members of different families. Seventeen accidents killed two family members each, nine killed three and six killed four.
Besides, a pickup van lost control and overturned in one accident, killing four members of the same family.
The report identified several factors behind such tragedies, including the growing tendency of family members to travel together for work and leisure, the movement of auto-rickshaws on highways, and the poor fitness of many microbuses and ambulances.
It also cited the incompetence and fatigue of microbus and ambulance drivers, failure to use quality helmets, reckless motorcycle riding and a tendency among road users to violate traffic rules.
To prevent such tragedies, the foundation recommended ensuring the use of quality helmets by motorcycle riders, enforcing traffic laws, and constructing road dividers and service roads on highways.
It also called for safer road designs that prevent rural roads from connecting directly to highways, stronger monitoring of vehicles on roads and highways, and ensuring institutional efficiency, transparency and accountability among relevant organisations.
The foundation further recommended conducting education and awareness programmes to improve road users' capacity to follow traffic safety rules.
The report was signed by Road Safety Foundation Executive Director Saidur Rahman.