"We appeal for (safety) at level crossings and passenger ships during this Christmas and New Year," KNKT Chairman Soerjanto Tjahjono remarked during the press conference titled "2023 KNKT Achievements" here on Thursday.
Tjahjono noted that motorists should be careful while navigating railway level crossings by looking to the left and right before moving ahead.
"We need to look to the left and right and ensure that there is no train passing at the level crossings, especially when there are no barriers at the crossing," he emphasized.
Tjahjono said there will be an increase in the frequency of train trips during the year-end period, so people are advised to exercise caution at level crossings.
"There were several incidents when the train frequency increased," he remarked.
Based on data from the Transportation Ministry's Directorate General of Railways, some 1,142 accidents had occurred at level crossings during the 2019-2022 period.
Most accidents, reaching 1,004, occurred due to unsupervised crossings.
However, the trend of accident and fatality rates continued to decline since 2019.
The KNKT noted that accidents in roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) passenger boats were dominated by fire incidents, due to several factors, such as cargo containing toxic and hazardous materials, electricity, and brake problems.
Tjahjono affirmed that his side also coordinated with the Transportation Ministry and the National Police in anticipating traffic accidents during the Christmas and New Year period.
The KNKT stated that three prominent accident cases were recorded in 2023: a tourist bus falling into a ravine in the Guci Tourism Area, an accident at the Bawen Toll Exit in Central Java, and a pile-up of trucks with other vehicles on Perintis Merdeka Street in West Java.
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Translator: Benardy F, Kenzu
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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