INTRODUCTION
Road traffic accidents remain a significant public safety concern worldwide, often
resulting in loss of lives, injuries, and economic burdens. This research focuses on the
effectiveness of the Traffic Management Unit in Sto. Domingo, Albay Philippines, in
preventing such accidents from 2022 to 2024. This study aims to examine the overall
incidence of road traffic accidents, determine the underlying causes, and recommend
preventive strategies to minimize their occurrence.
According to the World health Association (WHO, 2023) Every year, around 1.19 million
people die in road crashes worldwide-about one person every 26 seconds. Another 20
to 50 million suffer injuries that often lead to long-term disability. These accidents are
now the leading cause of death for young people aged 5 to 29, and they also take a
heavy toll on countries' economies, costing up to 3% of their GDP. Vulnerable road
users-such as pedestrians, cyclists, and especially motorcyclists-make up more than
half of all road deaths. Sadly, 92% of these deaths happen in low- and middle-income
countries, including the Philippines.
The economic impact is huge. According to the World Bank, road crashes in these
countries cause annual losses of 2-6% of GDP-money that could have gone to schools,
hospitals, or public transport. In the Philippines, WHO and the Department of
Transportation estimate the loss at 2.6% of the country's GDP, while other sources put it
as high as USD 11 billion in 2021 (around 3% of GDP). These costs come from hospital
care, vehicle damage, legal fees, and, most of all, lost income-when the victim can no
longer work, or when a family member has to stop working to care for them. (World
Bank, 2023; WHO, 2023; Asian Transport Outlook, 2024)
The good news is that road crashes are not random events-we can stop them with the
right rules and road design. The WHO's Global Plan for the 2021-2030 Decade of
Action says crashes are 'predictable and preventable' and encourages every country to
build a Safe System that protects everyone on the road. Studies show that actions like
setting clear speed limits, conducting regular patrols, and placing proper road signs can
reduce crashes by 16-26%. This makes the work of Traffic Management Units (TMUs)
essential in making roads safer. (WHO, 2021; World Bank, 2023)
Road crashes are also a serious issue in the Philippines. In 2024, the Philippine
National Police-Highway Patrol Group recorded about 31,000 crashes that resulted in
2,747 deaths-a 35% increase from the 2,030 deaths in 2023. Most crashes involved
motorcycles and four-wheeled vehicles, especially in high-traffic areas like Metro
Manila. To address this, the government created the Philippine Road Safety Action Plan
2023-2028, aiming to reduce road deaths by 35% through better enforcement and road
improvements. (PNP-HPG, 2024; MMDA, 2023; DOTr, 2023)
Sto. Domingo is a small town in Albay with about 37,765 residents. It lies along the
Legazpi-Tabaco coastal highway, where tricycles, buses, and motorcycles crowd
narrow two-lane roads. Recent road extensions and growing tourism traffic have made
local roads even busier. A 2020-2022 provincial report showed Sto. Domingo was
among the towns with rising motorcycle crashes, especially at night and near coastal
curves. Since 2022, the town's TMU has been running speed checks and safety patrols,
but there is still no formal study to measure how effective these efforts are. (Albay PPO,
2023; PhilAtlas, 2023)
Even though there are national and provincial road-safety programs, there is still no
local report showing whether TMU efforts in Sto. Domingo are working. The TMU
carries out safety measures like speed monitoring and helmet campaigns, but their
results are only recorded in blotters or shared through word of mouth. There has been
no comparison between crash data before and after these programs, and no interviews
to find out if people feel safer. This lack of data makes it harder to improve the TMU's
efforts. This study hopes to fill that gap. (TMU Sto. Domingo, 2024)
