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The majority of professional drivers take the wheel on city streets and long routes with various health complications, including high blood pressure, diabetes, blurred vision and smoking-related issues.
This sick driving often leads to major accidents and is mostly responsible for imperilling road safety, according to a health check-up campaign for professional drivers.
The Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) identified these health problems during recent primary health check-ups of professional drivers at various bus terminals and BRTA training centres.
The regulatory body for ensuring order in the road transport sector and road safety in Bangladesh found that 50 to 70 per cent of drivers had vision problems and complications related to smoking.
To mark the National Road Safety Day, the BRTA in collaboration with Ahsania Mission, Lions Club and Rotary Club organised health camps at bus terminals.
The health check-ups of drivers were conducted in Dhaka's Jaor Shahara, Diabari BRTA training centres at Dhaka Metro 3 Circle Office, BRTA Cumilla, Shilpakala Academy and Rajshahi City Corporation since October 11.
At a press conference on Tuesday ahead of National Road Safety Day on October 22, BRTA Chairman Nur Mohammad Mazumder shared the data with journalists.
According to the findings, among the 249 drivers examined, 47 had blood-related problems, 109 had smoking-related problems and 69 had issues with random blood sugar (RBS) levels.
The camps also assessed the eyesight of 289 drivers, revealing vision problems in 164 drivers, other eye problems in 59 and contract problems in eight others.
Providing further details, the BRTA chairman said that at the Diabari training centre Dhaka Metro-3 Circle, out of 102 drivers examined, 23 had high blood pressure, 26 had RBS issues and 56 were diagnosed with smoking-related complications. Besides, 48 out of 112 drivers at this centre were found to have vision problems, while 22 had other eye issues.
At Saidabad Bus Terminal, nine out of 42 drivers examined were found to have high blood pressure, 17 had RBS issues and 25 had smoking-related problems. At this terminal, eye examinations were conducted on 45 drivers, reporting that over 70 per cent had vision problems.
The chairman said although the data indicates an average of 15 people die in road accidents in the country, showing an increasing trend, real-time data on road accidents might reflect improvement if the data ratio were considered in relation to the increase in road capacity, vehicle numbers and population.
He called for a social awareness campaign to ensure road safety, given the widespread tendency to violate traffic rules.
The BRTA chairman also said they have implemented various measures, including improving vehicle fitness, implementing point deductions for driving offences, introducing RFID tags in vehicles, fixing an economic life for vehicles and implementing a scrapping policy.
Ahead of the National Road Safety Day, the BRTA chairman said awareness campaigns have been conducted on traffic rules in streets and educational institutes.
This includes rallies and the display of festoons, posters and banners at various key locations. Moreover, there will be special supplements in newspapers, a discussion meeting with stakeholders at the Osmani Auditorium and TV talk shows.
Regarding the methodology for collecting data on road accidents, the chairman said they have started gathering data from hospitals to include information on the deaths of injured individuals who pass away within a month of the accident.
The BRTA now has 19 magistrates to conduct drives against reckless driving and unfit vehicles.