Thailand's 17th Road Safety Seminar Targets Safer Cities
Thailand launched the 17th National Road Safety Seminar under the theme "Unlocking Safe Cities" to address the country's persistently high road fatality rate of about 50 deaths per day. Deputy Transport Minister Surapong Angskulkeerati stressed that road crashes cause massive economic and social losses, requiring cross-sector cooperation. The seminar on November 19–20 will focus on children, youth, and the elderly, with area-based pilot projects planned for high-risk provinces like Rayong and Chiang Mai.
Road accidents remain a critical problem causing massive loss of life and property, while also affecting long-term quality of life and social development. Building road safety cannot rely solely on post-crash fixes; it requires prevention from the outset, covering road systems, vehicles, road users, and law enforcement, with cooperation from all sectors to create a safe travel environment for everyone.
Recently, the Ministry of Transport, together with the Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth), the Department of Land Transport, the Department of Local Administration, the Department of Disease Control, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, the Road Safety Academic Center (Road Safety Thailand), the Safe Roads Policy Foundation, and network partners held a press conference for the 17th National Road Safety Academic Seminar under the concept "Unlocking Safe Cities: Unlocking Safe Roads for Safe Cities." They declared the readiness of all sectors to drive road safety forward in concrete terms on October 29, 2026, at the Department of Land Transport in Bangkok.
Deputy Transport Minister Surapong Angskulkeerati reflected that road accidents each year inflict enormous economic and social losses on the country, with an average fatality rate of about 50 people per day, or more than 10,000 per year — higher than all other disasters in Thailand combined. The scourge of road crashes is not a personal issue but a challenge every agency must seriously tackle together. Hence the 17th Road Safety Academic Seminar under the "Unlocking Safe Cities" concept aims to unlock constraints and turn data into actionable change from policy to practice.
This year's seminar adopts a more intensive format. Beyond focusing on children and youth, it adds attention to the elderly, whose accident rates are rising, aiming for sustainable crash reduction by making road safety a Thai cultural value.
"We strive to minimize road losses as much as possible. Although trends have improved over the past decade, with roughly 15,000 deaths annually the rate remains high, so we must work harder to cut crashes and fatalities. The event takes place on November 19–20 at IMPACT Forum Muang Thong Thani, and I invite all stakeholders and interested parties to attend and share ideas."
Department of Land Transport Director-General Sarawut Paitoonpong emphasized the department's direction to raise safety standards, treating crash reduction as a core mission for all staff. In 2026, the department issued 78 laws, regulations, and announcements — equivalent to the previous five years combined — to elevate driver standards, vehicle conditions, environments, and tools.
"Under the government and the Ministry of Transport, we are dead serious about reducing accidents. When ThaiHealth and its network invited us to co-host this national seminar, we didn't hesitate. We proposed a detailed area-based approach in high-accident provinces such as Rayong and Chiang Mai to create model examples for lowering rates."
