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If crashes are rising in Malaysia, fix the roads – not the courts

While most such accidents are attributed to human error, poor infrastructure makes mistakes more likely

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Anita Gabriel

Anita Gabriel

Published Wed, Apr 29, 2026 · 06:45 AM
    • Studies on Malaysian road conditions highlight inadequate lighting, weak visual guidance and faded markings as factors that impair drivers’ ability to see and respond, more so at night.
    • Studies on Malaysian road conditions highlight inadequate lighting, weak visual guidance and faded markings as factors that impair drivers’ ability to see and respond, more so at night. PHOTO: BT FILE

    CALLS in Malaysia for dedicated courts to handle road crash cases – amid a worrying uptrend in accidents – may be a practical and natural response to clear a growing backlog. But could it be the wrong place to start?

    The question shouldn’t be how to process these cases faster, but why road accidents are piling up in the first place. This matters, for Malaysia is not short on ambition.

    The Malaysia Road Safety Plan (MRSP) 2022-2030 has set a clear target: to halve road deaths by end-2030 from a 2019 baseline of 6,167. But several years since its launch, fatalities remain stubbornly high – if not higher.

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