Deputy health minister, Ali-Akbar Sayyari said nearly 54 Iranians lose their lives and 110 are left disabled in car accidents every day. Sayyari was speaking at a conference on the main causes of death in Iran, on Saturday, reports IRNA. According to national statistics, the economic cost of traffic accidents is huge - 200 trillion rials ($6 billion) per year for 15 million registered vehicles. Each year, road mishaps kill nearly 28,000 people and injure/disable 300,000 people. The most common traffic rule violations by drivers are: not wearing the safety seatbelt which tops the list, followed by speeding, running the red light, violating lane discipline and road rage. More recently, the use of cell phones behind the wheel has become a major nuisance and a danger to road safety.
