Eight years after the historic student-led movement for safe roads, the carnage on the country’s thoroughfares continues unabated, claiming the lives of 7,364 students over the past seven and a half years.
The Road Safety Foundation (RSF) data reveals that student deaths accounted for a staggering 15.11 per cent of the total 48,713 road fatalities recorded between 2019 and June 2026.
The statistics paint a grim picture of unfulfilled promises following the 2018 protests, which were sparked by the deaths of two Shaheed Ramiz Uddin Cantonment College students under the wheels of a reckless Jabale Noor Paribahan bus.
Despite that unprecedented uprising, the transport sector remains plagued by a lack of discipline and the absence of sustainable safety plans.
The deceased include 3,328 school and madrasa students (45.19 per cent) aged between 5 and 17, and 4,036 college and university students (54.80 per cent) aged between 18 and 25.
Analysis shows that motorcycles remain the deadliest mode of transport for students, accounting for 3,841 deaths (52.15 per cent). Additionally, 1,923 students (26.11 per cent) were killed as pedestrians, 927 (12.58 per cent) died as passengers in various vehicles, 519 (7.04 per cent) were killed while on bicycles or rickshaws, 154 (2.09 per cent) died due to clothing becoming entangled in the wheels of auto-rickshaws.
Regional roads proved the most treacherous, accounting for 2,149 deaths (29.18 per cent), followed by rural roads at 1,947 (26.43 per cent), city roads at 1,786 (24.25 per cent), and highways at 1,482 (20.12 per cent).
For student pedestrians, the danger was highest on rural roads (37.75 per cent) and city roads (27.92 per cent). Younger students (aged 5–12) were frequently hit by auto-rickshaws, bikes, and freight vehicles near their homes or on their way to school, mostly in rural areas.
Conversely, those aged 13–25 were predominantly killed in motorcycle accidents on regional roads and highways.
While fatalities peaked in 2022 with 1,385 deaths, the numbers remain consistently high – 1,153 deaths in 2023, 1,073 deaths in 2024, 1,014 in 2025, 391 in 2026 (until June).
Beyond road accidents, 1,237 students were killed on railway tracks over the same period, often while using headphones or crossing carelessly.
The report identifies faulty roads, unsafe vehicles, and a “sick political culture” as primary drivers of the crisis. It further notes that discipline in the transport sector is often undermined by “vested interest groups” who benefit from chaos, corruption, and extortion. Efforts to restore order are described as “unscientific and uncoordinated”.
To mitigate the crisis, experts recommend – introducing annual road safety campaigns and government-led teacher training, including road safety questions in school examinations, strictly enforcing laws to prevent minors from riding motorcycles, banning unsafe vehicles and ensuring the Road Transport Act is implemented without interference.
