In March 2025 alone, Bangladesh witnessed a staggering toll on its roads, with 587 accidents claiming 604 lives and leaving 1,231 people injured, according to a report by the Road Safety Foundation. Among the deceased were 89 women and 97 children, painting a grim picture of the country’s road safety situation.
The report, based on monitoring nine national dailies, seven online news portals, various electronic media outlets, and the foundation’s own sources, highlights a worsening trend, with motorcyclists continuing to be the most vulnerable group.
Motorcycles deadliest on the roads
Motorcycles were involved in 242 of the reported accidents, resulting in 233 fatalities—representing over 38% of all deaths. These two-wheelers alone accounted for more than 41% of total crashes, reinforcing their growing role in road fatalities.
Pedestrians also bore the brunt of road dangers, with 109 people killed while attempting to cross or walk along roads—making up 18% of the total death toll.
Additionally, 98 drivers and their assistants lost their lives, which equates to 16.22% of all fatalities.
Waterways and rail also claim lives
The report does not limit its scope to road accidents. It also records six incidents on waterways that killed nine people and injured 14.
Meanwhile, 16 railway track accidents led to 19 deaths and left four injured, revealing continued vulnerability across all modes of transportation in Bangladesh.
The analysis offers a detailed breakdown of the deceased based on the type of transport involved. Apart from the 233 motorcyclists, 119 deaths were reported among passengers of three-wheelers like easy bikes, CNG autorickshaws, and nearly 20% of the overall fatalities.
Passengers of trucks, pickups, tractors, trolleys, and cargo vehicles made up 9.27% of deaths, while bus passengers accounted for just over 5%.
Seventeen people died in crashes involving private cars, microbuses, ambulances, and jeeps.
Locally assembled vehicles like Nasimons, Votvotis, and Mahindras were responsible for the deaths of 27 people, and 11 fatalities were recorded among bicycle and rickshaw riders.
Roads that kill: Highways and regional routes most dangerous
According to the foundation, national highways were the scene of nearly 39% of the crashes. However, regional roads surpassed them with over 43% of accidents occurring there. Rural roads accounted for around 12%, and city streets for just over 5%.
The causes behind the tragedies vary, though most—about 44%—were due to drivers losing control of their vehicles. Head-on collisions caused 26% of the accidents, while almost one in five incidents involved pedestrians being hit or run over.
Rear-end collisions accounted for 8%, and a small number occurred due to other or unidentified reasons.
What kind of vehicles were involved?
A total of 884 vehicles were involved in the 587 reported accidents. Of these, trucks, covered vans, pickups, police vans, tractors, trolleys, oil tankers, drum trucks, and cargo services were collectively involved in 32.9% of the crashes.
Motorcycles followed at 28.39%. Three-wheelers were involved in over 15% of incidents, while buses accounted for 12%.
Private vehicles, including microbuses, cars, jeeps, and ambulances—were involved in less than 4% of accidents.
Locally produced transport contributed to over 4%, and rickshaws and bicycles made up around 1.5%. A small number of crashes involved vehicles that could not be identified.
The risk on the roads also varied with the time of day. Most accidents occurred in the morning hours, with 26% taking place then.
Evenings and nights also saw significant proportions, at around 23% and 21% respectively. Afternoons accounted for nearly 20%, while early mornings saw the fewest accidents.
Dhaka division the deadliest
In the capital city itself, Dhaka witnessed 21 road accidents that left 14 people dead and 53 injured.
Regionally, the Dhaka Division experienced the highest number of accidents, with 182 incidents leading to 184 deaths—representing about 31% of the total.
Sylhet recorded the lowest figures, with just 24 accidents resulting in 30 deaths.
Bogra was the deadliest district, where 27 accidents led to 32 deaths. Netrokona, on the other hand, recorded several accidents but no fatalities—an unusual but welcome deviation from the national trend.
Faces behind the numbers
Beyond the statistics lie the lives of lost people from all walks of life. Among the deceased were two police officers, a BGB member, and an army personnel.
Twelve educators from various schools, colleges, and madrasas lost their lives, as did three journalists and two lawyers.
Seven employees from banks and insurance companies, and 14 from NGOs, were killed.
The list also includes 21 sales representatives, 31 local businesspeople, a Union Parishad chairman, 17 local political leaders and UP members, and a staff member from Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University.
Seven imams and muezzins, eight garment factory workers, nine-day laborers, two masons, a carpenter, two persons with disabilities, and several students from across the country also lost their lives in March’s Road tragedies.
