Pakistan State Oil has pledged to collaborate with the Road Traffic Injury Research and Prevention Centre (RTIR&PC) to increase awareness regarding road safety practices among motorists and ensure that the masses at large stay safe while commuting.
Being a national company PSO's focus is not just business but also on how to provide for the safety of road users especially motorcyclists, said a press release issued here on Tuesday. In furtherance of this, PSO has decided to collaborate with the RTIR&PC- a government of Pakistan institute aimed at reducing road accidents and fatalities.
At a recent meeting with officials from the RTIR&PC including Dr Rashid Jooma (Principal Investigator), Asad Jahangir (Consultant) and Syed Ameer Hussain (Programme Manager), PSO Chairman Sohail Wajahat Siddiqui pledged PSO's support to the institute in carrying out a helmet safety awareness campaign. In the recent past, PSO had supported the same organisation in its endeavour for road safety by displaying public service messages at its retail outlets.
During the session, the officials from RTIR&PC shared some statistics on road accidents of motorcyclists and helmet usage in Pakistan. Interestingly it was noted that while motorcyclists comprised nearly 60 percent of all road users, however, unfortunately less than 40 percent of them wore helmets while on the road. It was also noted that the majority of head trauma and fatality cases in accidents could have been avoided had helmets been worn by the motorcyclists. After the presentation by RTIR&PC, the officials from both ends shared ideas on injury prevention and awareness building initiatives amongst road users.-PR