ANG MO KIO NEW TOWN (ROAD ACCIDENTS)

Mr Hwang Soo Jin asked the Minister for Home Affairs (i) the total number of road accidents involving pedestrians, categorised into fatal and non-fatal, in Ang Mo Kio New Town for each of the years 1980 and 1981; and (ii) the measures that have been and are being taken in the New Town to enhance road safety for all road-users in general and pedestrians in particular.

Mr Chua Sian Chin: The figures for the number of road accidents involving pedestrians in Ang Mo Kio in 1980 and 1981 are as follows:- Fatal Non-Fatal 1980 3 76 1981 4 116 Studies have shown that pedestrians above the age of 55 and children below the age of 14 are most vulnerable to accidents. This is true in respect of the accidents in Ang Mo Kio. Of the 7 fatal cases during the two years, 5 were above the age of 55 and one was below the age of 14.

The Traffic Police, together with the Public Works Department and the Registry of Vehicles, have approached the problem of road safety in three ways, viz: a Enforcement As in the other constituencies, Traffic Police and Police Division officers are deployed daily at busy road intersections and places with heavy pedestrian traffic in Ang Mo Kio to enforce the Pedestrian Crossing Rules and also to make sure that pedestrians use the available road crossing facilities. The Traffic Police also carry out selective enforcement against motorists by concentrating on offences that are likely to cause accidents resulting in injury or death. b Education (i) Campaigns and Exhibitions: In view of the high fatality rate among the aged, a "Help the Aged to Cross" campaign was conducted by Traffic Police in 1981 with the help of Residents' Committees in 7 constituencies, including Ang Mo Kio. In addition, 27 road safety exhibitions were held at community centres, schools, factories, SAF camps and HDB void decks. Two of these were held at the void decks of Block 410 and Block 230, Ang Mo Kio in 1981 in conjunction with the Residents' Committees. (ii) Use of Mass Media: The Traffic Police has an ongoing publicity programme which includes a weekly Road Safely Column published in all major local newspapers. (iii) Schools: Road safety education efforts are also being directed at the schools. In conjunction with the Ministry of Education, a long-term comprehensive educational programme for teaching school children road safety measures at the Road Safety Park was inaugurated in 1981. To date, about 81,000 students have attended the training. Of these, about 2,500 students were from schools in Ang Mo Kio. This programme will continue to educate 80,000 to 90,000 students a year. c Road Engineering Improvements to road engineering in the form of better-designed traffic junctions, signalised pedestrian crossings and overhead bridges are essential for ensuring road safety. Since 1979,13 traffic lights,4 signalised pedestrian crossings and 4 overhead bridges have been constructed in Ang Mo Kio. The installation of 3 additional traffic lights and 1 signalised pedestrian crossing is still in progress. The PWD has plans to install another 2 traffic lights, 4 signalised pedestrian crossings and 2 overhead bridges in Ang Mo Kio by the end of the year.