More than 60 percent of the Qataris who die in road accidents are young men, according to a HMC doctor.

Most of them are aged between 10 and 29 years, said Dr Rafael Consunji, Injury Prevention Director Hamad Medical Corporation.

These youngsters only make up to two percent of the population, but comprise 35 to 45 percent of all road accident victims.

These accidents account for 11 to 12 percent of deaths, Dr Consunji said while presenting the findings of a study on road safety in Qatar at the third Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) and Road Safety Forum, which opened yesterday.

Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) and Road Safety Forum discusses road safety, challenges and solutions in the Middle East’s transportation and infrastructure industries.

Several officials from Public Works Authority (Ashghal) and Ministry of Interior, many experts from different countries present their experience and suggestions at the forum.

Yousef Abdulrahman Al Emadi, Director of roads operations and maintenance department at Ashghal said that since the launch of National Road Safety Strategy in 2013 all road projects in the country strictly follow safety guidelines and accredited road safety auditors are appointed for monitoring.

“The Work Zone Traffic Management Guide launched by Ashghal has helped to significantly reduce road accidents at work sites,” he added.

The first ITS & Road Safety Awards were also presented for outstanding contribution in road safety.

Kulluna safety campaign by the Hamad International Training Centre (HITC) was given the Industry recognition award for outstanding road safety implementation for the car seat safety project. The award was received by the campaign head Dr Khalid Abdulnoor Saifeldeen and his team. [The Peninsula]