The Hon. Lieutenant Commander (Rtd.) Prageeth Madhuranga

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, I welcome bringing to Parliament, after a long gap, two Special Gazettes under the Motor Traffic Act. Gazette Extraordinary No. 2452/40 introduces legal provisions to identify, test and take action against drivers using narcotics, thereby preventing drug-impaired driving and ensuring road safety.

¶ 02 Gazette Extraordinary No. 2455/29 makes seat belts mandatory for all seats when driving on expressways, reducing fatalities and serious injuries and strengthening road safety.

¶ 03 Sri Lanka records 11 deaths per 100,000 population annually from road accidents, higher than the global benchmark of 10 or less. Beyond regulations, everyone shares responsibility to reduce deaths and property damage.

¶ 04 From 2020–2025 there were 142,932 road accidents, with 14,551 deaths—averaging 2,910 per year, about eight per day. Many survivors are left disabled, destabilizing families.

¶ 05 About 86% of accidents involve light vehicles; insurance data indicate roughly 80% from light vehicles, 10.3% from heavy vehicles, 3.7% other causes. The human capital loss exceeds even war-time destruction; annual economic loss is around 4% of GDP due to crashes.

¶ 06 In 2024 there were 25,299 crashes; 13,581 due to careless/dangerous driving. In 2025, of 24,758 crashes, 15,211 were due to reckless driving. In 2024, 815 pedestrians died; by 30 November 2025, 720.

¶ 07 Seat belts are scientifically proven to reduce death risk by 40–60% and serious injuries by about 50%. In high-speed travel (80–100 km/h), sudden deceleration generates high forces; without a belt, occupants strike obstacles with greater force and time-to-impact is shorter, worsening injury. Unbelted rear passengers can be propelled forward, injuring belted front occupants or be ejected. Therefore, not only on expressways but always, wear seat belts.

¶ 08 Driving sober and safely is a social responsibility; one’s gain must not endanger others. We urge zero tolerance for intoxicated drivers in public transport, school and office shuttles, and insist seat belts for all passengers. These Regulations empower authorities to enforce effectively.

¶ 09 On Gampaha District: PRDA allocations in 2025 total Rs. 1,333.7 million; RDA allocations Rs. 2,227.7 million for road development. We are also restoring 18 previously non-viable bus routes; from 1 January we restarted services on five routes. Of the nine SLTB depots in Gampaha, we are moving them to self-sustainability with the support of the Ministry. Thank you.