Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh launched the Year of Traffic Safety 2018 during a ceremony in Hanoi on January 3. 

Speaking at the event, Binh said traffic accidents decreased in number of cases, fatalities and injured victims from 2012 – 2017. 

In 2017, traffic accidents claimed 8,279 lives, 406 fewer than 2016, marking the greatest single year reduction since 2013. 

He asked the National Traffic Safety Committee, ministries, agencies, mass organisations and authorities of centrally-run cities and provinces to abide by the Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee’s Instruction on strengthening Party leadership on ensuring safety and order of road, railway and inland waterway traffic, the Government’s resolution on adopting key measures to ensure traffic safety and order and instructions from Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

The Deputy PM requested fulfilling key tasks this year, including refining mechanisms on traffic safety, modernising equipment for traffic police and inspectors, restructuring and improving public transport services and using modern technology in transport management, among others. 

Concluding the event was a parade by transport public security forces. 

A similar event took place in Ho Chi Minh City the same day.-VNA