Journal of Advanced Research in Civil and Environmental Engineering

Volume 5, Issue 1&2 - 2018, Pg. No. 10-22

Peer Reviewed Journal
Research Article

Traffic Accidents in Iraq: An Analytical Study

Ali Ahmed Mohammed1,2,3, Kamarudin Bin Ambak1,2, Ahmed
Mancy Mosa4, Deprizon Syamsunur5
1
Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2Smart Driving Research Center (SDRC), University Tun Hussein Onn
Malaysia, 86400 Parit Raja, Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaysia.
3
Building and Construction Engineering Department, College of Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad, Iraq.
4
Civil Engineering Department, Al-Mansour University College, Baghdad, Iraq.
5
Faculty of Civil Engineering Department UCSI University, Jalan Menara Gading 1, Taman Connaught-56000
Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur.

Abstract
Traffic accidents in Iraq with great seriousness and comparable with the current terrorism operations, it
has been considerably menaced the life of the Iraqi society. It has become one of the problems that drain
the material resources and causes social problems and loss of human energies, that are considered the
main element of the society. Traffic accidents have long been recognized as an iceberg for comprehending
the discrepancies of traffic accidents and entire transportation systems. Besides, there is an insufficiency
of experts of highway safety, and real experience is limited to few experts in Iraq. There is also a lack in
the distribution of those experts and deficiency in the professional staff of highway safety. Data on fatal
injuries caused by traffic accidents was covered by the author of this study during (2005-2011) for the
fifteen governorates in Iraq, Data on number of traffic accidents per governorate was obtained from the
General Traffic Directorate with cooperation Ministry of Planning/ the Central Statistical Organization
(CSO) with coordination with the Ministry of Interior in Iraq. Traffic accidents analysis was performed
based on the number of factors like gender and age of the driver, light condition, type of accident and
status of the road. Reasons for traffic accident were also illuminated based on the driver, the road, the
passenger, and the pedestrians so as to verify the cause and effect of traffic accidents in Iraq. Results
showed that the distribution of traffic accidents deaths and injuries in Iraq varied according to age, gender,
month and time. Overall, traffic accidents were dramatically increased from 2005 to 2011. Moreover, road
accidents are relatively higher in extreme weather during working hours. Analysis of road traffic accidents
based on light condition showed that the accidents rate was significantly decreased in the night. Collision
accidents recorded highest results in Baghdad and Babil city. However, results were slightly approximated
for the rest of the cities. Ratios for the car coup gave higher magnitudes in Al- Qadissiya, Baghdad, Babil,
and Basrah city for the wetted road. It indicates the absence of security precautions especially during
rainy days hence vehicles will be slipped accordingly. It was observed that the highest accidents ratio
was attributed to the driver and it was 36% for Baghdad city and number of accidents was 2379. Whilst
Nineveh city registered fewer accidents ratio with 22% and a number of the accident was 586. Result for
traffic accidents based on the type of the vehicle indicated that saloon vehicle resulted in higher rate of
traffic accidents up to 26.3%. Baghdad city was higher than the other cities, a number of accidents in
Baghdad were 1234 while the number of accidents was significantly decreased to 425 in Al-Anbar city.

Keywords: Traffic accidents, Road safety, Injuries rate, Fatality rate

Corresponding Author: Dr. Kamarudin Bin Ambak, University Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, 86400 Parit Raja, Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaysia.
E-mail Id: kamardin@uthm.edu.my
Orcid Id: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2885-3606
How to cite this article: Mohammed AA, Ambak KB, Mosa AM et al. Traffic Accidents in Iraq: An Analytical Study. J Adv Res Civil
Envi Engr 2018; 5(1&2): 10-22.

Copyright (c) 2018 Journal of Advanced Research in Civil and Environmental Engineering
(E ISSN: 2393-8307 I P ISSN: 2394-7020)

11
Introduction
Iraq occupies an essential location in the Arabic homeland
with an area exceeds 438000 km2 and the total population
of about 37547686 capita; around 70% of the Iraqi people
inhabit the urban areas. Geographically, Iraq has 33° 00’
N latitude and 43° 00’ E longitude. It is regionally located
within the Middle East in Southwest Asia[1]. The vital cities in
Iraq are Baghdad, Al-Mosul, Al-Basra, and Al-Sulaymaniyah.
With more than 59600 km of paved roadways, hence they
are very essential for the mobility of people and goods
and goods. However, Iraq occupies an advanced position
internationally within the traffic accidents[2]. According
to The World Health Organization (WHO,2011), more
than 1.25 million individual dies annually in Iraq because
of the traffic crashes. Road traffic injuries caused death
among people aged between 15 and 29 years old. As a
matter of fact, around 90% of the fatalities on the roads
occur in center revenue nations, despite the fact that
these nations have roughly 54% of the world’s vehicles.
Furthermore, nearly half of those who are dying on the
roads are “vulnerable road users”: pedestrians, cyclists,
and motorcyclists. Road traffic collisions cost around 3%
of the country gross domestic product (WHO,2011) [2].
Road traffic crashes are predicted to become the seventh
leading cause of death by 2030. Moreover, the newly
adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has
set an ambitious target of reducing the global number of
deaths and injuries caused by road traffic accidents by
2020 (WHO,2015)[3].
Traffic accidents are more likely to happen during heavy
traffic volume[4]. In addition, vehicle type and accident
location are found to be important factors that are
significantly associated with accident severity[5]. Road
accident occurrence and severity had menaced the life
of the common for long years in Iraq. The catastrophic
growth of traffic accidents alerted the governmental policy
especially after the increase of vehicles after 2003’s. The
drastic growth of vehicles number in Iraq was attributed
to the economy recover after the removal of the economic
siege after the 2003[6]. Thus, a traffic accident has been
dramatically increased since 2003 especially with the
absence of traffic management programs[7]. Several
Figure 1.Road Accidents Fatality Rates for Selected Countries Source: World Health Organization (2015)
Mohammed AA et al.
J. Adv. Res. Civil Envi. Engr. 2018; 5(1&2)
indicators and measures are usually adopted to quantify
the situation of road accidents in an area. These indicators
are effective tools to compare characteristics of accidents
spatially and temporally. A number of accidents, number
of the dead, number of injuries and mortality rate are
the major frequently employed accident indicators in
highway accident studies[8]. The essential impacts traffic of
accidents is their negative effect on public life and health,
mortality rate indicator is, therefore, usually adopted to
quantify these impacts[9]. The traffic accidents mortality
rate in Iraq was 20.2 in 2013. According to WHO report
Iraq ranks 113th in the global this rate is moderately higher
than the worldwide rate of 17.4. Moreover, Iraq ranks
113th in the global list in which Monaco ranks first with
zero mortality rate according to the WHO report, Iraq
positions as the median with fatality rate (20.2) are just
under the mean rate of 20.6. The World Health Organization
(WHO) estimates the traffic fatality rate in the Eastern
Mediterranean Region (EMR) to be the second highest
rate globally after the African Region(WHO,2011). Iraq
was classified as the second highest road traffic fatality
rate within the EMR (WHO,2011). Figure 1 was included
so as to compare crash mortality rate of Iraq globally and
regionally its six bordering countries, Iraq positions as the
median with fatality rate (20.2) are just under the mean
rate of 20.6 (WHO,2011; WHO,2015). Unlike others, the
rate of Syria belongs to 2010 because of the recent unrest
in the country due to terrorism.
The aim of this paper is to enrich the universal highway
safety by illuminating the current situation of the traffic
accidents in Iraq during 2005 to 2011 all over Iraq. Two
objectives have been set up: firstly, to shed light on the
available official statistics relevant to the traffic accidents.
secondly, to analyses the causality risk of the traffic
accidents, including both riders and passengers so as to
find the factors contributing to the traffic accidents. Reasons
for traffic accidents will be broadly analyzed in this article
based on type of the road, type of the vehicle and kind
of accident. Consequently, a base for further research on
how to improve the situation of road traffic accidents will
be built. Figure 2 showed the map of Iraq with all its cities
that will be covered in this article.
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J. Adv. Res. Civil Envi. Engr. 2018; 5(1&2) 12

2004). In general, the current Iraqi Traffic Law consists of

38 divisions. It starts by defining key terms regarding road
components, vehicle types and road users. Several divisions
are devoted to a driving license, traffic violations, and fines.
The law supports and fosters.
highway safety through several approaches. For example,
divisions 2, 3 and 4 gave details about driving license and
how each driver should hold a valid one. Division 13 lists
safety and durability conditions that should be available in
Figure 2.Map of Iraq each vehicle. In divisions 15, 16 and 17, driving rules, road
Data Collection rules, and road priorities are given respectively. Specific
divisions are devoted to careless driving and aggressive
Data on fatal injuries caused by traffic accidents was covereddriving. Finally, in division 35 the law emphasizes that it
by the author of this study during (2005-2011) for the fifteenis the duty of provincial traffic directorates to raise traffic
governorates in Iraq Southern consists include Babil, Wasit, awareness of public on the purpose of reducing accidents
Najaf, Karbala, Al-Qādisiyah, Maysan, Muthanna, Dhi Qar, and regulating traffic (Ministry of Planning,2010)[12].
Basra, While the northern consists include Nineveh, Kirkuk,
Saladin, Al Anbar, Diyala, Baghdad as indicated in Figure 1. Result and Discussion
Data on the number of traffic accidents per governorate
was obtained from the General Traffic Directorate with Economic Costs of Traffic Accidents
cooperation Ministry of Planning/ the Central Statistical The Road traffic accidents (RTAs) cost countries
Organization (CSO) with coordination with the Ministry of approximately 3 to 5 percent of their Gross regional Product
Interior in Iraq (CSO, 2010; CSO, 2011). Traffic accidents according to (WHO, 2015). In the USA, the statistics report of
analysis was performed based on the number of factors the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
like gender and age of the driver, light condition, type of estimated the economic cost of the traffic accidents nearly
accident and status of the road. Reasons for traffic accident $242 billion in 2010[13]. Based on the feasibility study for
were also illuminated based on the driver, the road, the rehabilitation and upgrading the expressway No. 1, the
passenger, and the pedestrians so as to verify the cause average costs of a road accident in Iraq was 250,000 USD per
and effect of traffic accidents in Iraq (CSO, 2011)[10]. On mortality and 70,000 USD per morbidity[14]. The economic
the purpose of finalizing the whole picture regarding road costs of traffic accidents accounted for 14.8 billion USD
accidents in Iraq, it is essential to shed light on the Iraqi over the study period (2005-2011) representing about 2.9
Traffic Law and policy aspirations. Land Transport Law No. million USD per day as listed in the Table 1. The presented
50 in 1935 can be considered as the first documented Iraqi cost components cover productivity of casualties, property
traffic law. After several amendments, the law was replaced damage, medical bills costs, and emergency services such
with Traffic Law No. 48 in 1971[11]. Similarly, after several as ambulance, police, and fire services. This disaggregation
modifications and due to a rapid increase in motor cars, permits the application of unit cost approach to estimate
the law was replaced and revoked by the current into force traffic accident cost in a socioeconomic perspective.
Traffic Code (Order No. 86) issued in 2004 by the CPA (CPA,
Table 1.Cost and Percentage of mortality, morbidity due to traffic accidents in Iraq
Year Cost of Mortality $ Percentage of Cost Cost of Morbidity Percentage of Cost Total Cost $
Mortality per year $ Morbidity per year
2002 423,250,000 9% 495,040,000 11% 918,290,000
2003 338,750,000 8% 395,990,000 9% 734,740,000
2004 406,500,000 9% 475,160,000 10% 881,660,000
2005 447,250,000 10% 522,690,000 11% 969,940,000
2006 287,750,000 6% 212,310,000 5% 500,060,000
2007 302,500,000 7% 227,640,000 5% 530,140,000
2008 465,750,000 10% 384,930,000 8% 850,680,000
2009 537,750,000 12% 556,850,000 12% 1,094,600,000
2010 627,000,000 14% 629,720,000 14% 1,256,720,000
2011 675,750,000 15% 713,860,000 15% 1,389,610,000
Total 4,512,250,000 100% 4,614,190,000 100%

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Indications for Traffic Accidents
The term of traffic accident includes both on- and off-road
accidents. In 2005, a total of 9010 traffic accidents were
reported. Number of accidents recorded in Iraq through
(2005-2011) is illustrated in Figure 3. These accidents have
resulted in 4215 deaths and 5216 injuries according to the
most severe casualty class sustained by one of the persons
involved, traffic accidents are classified based on severity
level into fatal, injury, or property damage only (PDO)
(Depaire.2008). Furthermore, accident statistics included
the number of individuals of each casualty class, the number
and the type of involved vehicles for each accident severity
level. In 2006, a total of 3389 traffic accidents were reported
resulted in 936 deaths and 2453 injuries. Total accidents
recorded in 2007 was 3135 traffic accidents resulted in 1210
deaths and 3252 injuries. In 2008, a total of 5502 traffic
accidents were documented, they were resulted in 1863
deaths and 5499 injuries. Traffic accidents was significantly
increased 7452 traffic in 2009, thus resulted in 2151deaths
and 7955 injuries. Traffic accidents kept increasing up to
8861 traffic accidents in 2010. These accidents have resulted
in 2505 deaths and 8996 injuries. In 2011, a total of 10082
traffic accidents were computed resulted in 2703 deaths
and 10198 injuries. It is substantially concluded that the
traffic accidents were drastically grown from 2005 to 2011
thus possessed a hazard to the society, especially the youth
human resources[15].
Figure 3.Traffic accidents distribution through the study period
Age- and gender wise distribution of traffic accidental
deaths and injuries
Table 2 presents fatality distribution by age. The most
productive group aged between (30-41) years as it is the
most vulnerable to traffic accident fatality in Iraq. Age group
30-35 years comprise only 44% of Iraqi population but faces
almost 26.6% of total road accident fatality. During the
last six years from 2005 to 2011, the number of fatalities
faced by this age group has also increased substantially
Mohammed AA et al.
J. Adv. Res. Civil Envi. Engr. 2018; 5(1&2)
from 759 to 920 and the fatality rate grew from (18.5 -
29.4) %. However, Age group 36-41 years comprised only
20% of Iraqi population but faced around 20.6% of total
road accident fatality. During the last six years from 2005
to 2011, the number of fatalities faced by this age group
was distinctly developed from 627 to 645 with (16.1-
20.6) % of total fatality. On the other hand, the middle
age group 42-47 years was also prone to road accident
fatality. This age group comprised only 16% of the total
population and underwent 21% of total fatality. Therefore,
the economically active age group age 30-47 years is the
most vulnerable population group in Iraq. More than half
of the road accident fatalities are caused by this group of
population which accounted for less than one-third of the
total population. This is because people age within this
group are in their extreme working years and therefore they
are more subjected to traffic accidents. The proportion of
fatalities in the age groups 18-23 years and 60 years and
above was similar to their respective representation in
the total population. This table 3 shows the gender wise
distribution of road accidental fatalities. It is clear to see
that the males accounted for 74.9 % of all fatalities in 2005.
During the last six years, the number of fatalities occurred
by males was dramatically increased from 630 in 2005 to
2146 in 2011. However, fatality caused by females was
obviously less than the number of fatalities caused by
males. However, the number of accidents was dramatically
from 211 in 2005 to 557 in 2011and the fatality rate was
generally increased by 25.1%. Table 4 illuminated the
gender wise distribution of road accidental injuries during
(2005-2011). It is obvious to note that the males accounted
for 82.0 % of all injuries in 2005. During the study period,
the number of injuries caused by males was drastically
increased from increased by 82.0% from 1798 in 2005 to
9346 in 2011. However, injuries rate was significantly less
than injuries caused by females the number. However, the
number of injuries faced by females was generally increased
by 18.0% from 396 in 2005 to 852 in 2011.
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Table 2.Age wise distribution of road accidental deaths in Iraq

Age No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of  Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percen
group fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities tage
(2005) (2005) (2006) (2006) (2007) (2007) (2008) (2008) (2009) (2009) (2010) (2010) 2011 share %
(2011)
Up 321 7.9% 86 9.2% 73 6.0% 101 5.4% 147 6.8% 178 7.1% 161 5.1%
to 14
years
23-18 458 11.2% 121 12.9% 89 7.4% 118 6.3% 189 8.8% 163 6.5% 189 6.0%
years
29-24 597 14.6% 181 19.3% 145 12.0% 259 13.9% 275 12.8% 374 14.9% 418 13.3%
years
35-30 759 18.6% 231 24.7% 305 25.2% 495 26.6% 397 18.5% 579 23.1% 920 29.4%
years
41-36 627 16.1% 189 20.2% 205 16.9% 309 16.6% 413 19.2% 465 18.6% 645 20.6%
years
47-42 453 11.1% 69 7.4% 197 16.3% 221 11.9% 343 15.9% 217 8.7% 213 6.8%
years
53-48 357 8.7% 21 2.2% 89 7.4% 150 8.1% 153 7.1% 187 7.5% 191 6.1%
years
59-54 297 7.3% 18 1.9% 58 4.8% 121 6.5% 129 6.0% 169 6.7% 241 7.7%
years
60 175 4.3% 14 1.5% 44 3.6% 89 4.8% 94 4.4% 157 6.3% 147 4.7%
years
and
above
Other 11 0.3% 6 0.6% 5 0.4% 0 0.0% 11 0.5% 16 0.6% 9 0.3%

Total 4215 100% 936 100% 1210 100% 1863 100% 2151 100% 2505 100.0% 2703 100.0%

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Table 3.The gender wise distribution of road accidental fatalities in Iraq through the study period
Gender No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of  Percentage No. of  Percent
fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatalities share % fatali age
(2005)  (2005)  2006 (2006) (2007) (2007) (2008) (2008) (2009) (2009)  (2010) (2010) ties share %
2011 (2011)
Male 630 74.9% 784 83.76% 963 79.59% 1497 80.4% 1742 81.0% 1988 79.4% 2146 79.4%
Female 211 25.1% 152 16.24% 247 20.41% 366 19.6% 409 19.0% 517 20.6% 557 20.6%
Total 841   936   1210   1863   2151   2505   2703  
Table 4.Gender wise distribution of road accidental injuries in Iraq for the year 2005 and 2011
Gender No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of Percentage No. of  Percentage No. of  Percent
injuries share % injuries share % injuries share % injuries share % injuries share % injuries share % inju age
(2005) 2005 2006 2006 2007 2007 2008 2008 2009 2009 2010 2010 ries share %
2011 2011
Male 1798 82.0% 2013 82.06% 2742 84.32% 4687 85.2% 6874 86.4% 7887 87.7% 9346 91.6%
Female 396 18.0% 440 17.94% 510 15.68% 812 14.8% 1081 13.6% 1109 12.3% 852 8.4%
Total 2194   2453   3252   5499   7955   8996   10198  

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Month and time-wise distribution of road traffic
accidents
Figure 4 showed the month-wise distribution of road
accidents in Iraq. Although the monthly variation in road
accidents was not massive, road accidents were relatively
high in August -September, and October- November,
December. This is related to the extreme weather influenced
the occurrence of road accidents since the temperature
is fairly high in August-September in Iraq, hence it might
affect the traffic accidents. High temperatures have both
psychological and physiological effect on drivers. Emotions
rise with the temperature, people are more irritable to
others, they get tired, lose their concentration, and their
reaction time gets slower[16], [17], 18]. This is the reason for
the traffic accidents growth in summer, especially in
July. Although the occurrence of road traffic accidents in
August-September was not as high as in July-September.
Generally, it was higher than that in other months. It
may be attributed to the fact that a certain part of the
country particularly North Iraq underwent poor visibility
on the roads during December due to the hazy weather
condition. Generally, People drive somewhat slower and
leave shorter distance to the vehicle in front of them in
hazy weather. The diminished field of vision during the hazy
Figure 4.Number of road accidents by month of occurrence during the study period
Figure 5.Cumulative percentages of Number of Road traffic Accidents by Time
of Occurrence from 2005 to 2011
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weather increased the danger of accidents occurrence[19].
Traffic accidents massively took place in the July due to
the flux of a large number of students in the schools, and
the university in the main and branch roads causing more
traffic accidents. Figure 5 shows cumulative percentages
of time-wise distribution of road traffic accidents in Iraq.
It clearly reveals that there is a substantial variation in
road accidents during different times interval in the day.
Accidents were relatively constant and high from 6:00
am to 6:00 pm but it was decreased during mid-night
and early hours of the day. However, it does not indicate
that the daytime driving is riskier than nighttime driving.
Figure 6 illustrated the number of accidents for the
fifteen governorates in Iraq during the study period 2005
and 2011. There is a distinct gap in a number of Accidents
risk along the fifteen governorates Iraq governate varied
from 71 Accidents in Anbar to 987 Accident in Baghdad,
Babil has 1441, 1173 in Al-Najaf, 1154 in Basrah in 2010.
In 2011, fatality risk for Baghdad, Babil, Najaf, Qadisyah,
Thi Qar, Wasit, Basrah showed higher accidents as well as
co pared with the rest of the governorates. From 2005 to
2011, the number of Accidents risk in fifteen governates
covered in this study were dramatically increased. However,
Baghdad city showed the higher result for traffic accidents
and fatality rate followed by Babil, Najaf, and Basrah.
 Mohammed AA et al.
17 J. Adv. Res. Civil Envi. Engr. 2018; 5(1&2)

Figure 6.Road accident fatality risk in Iraq during 2005-2011

Distribution of road traffic accidents based on light condition

Table 5 indicated the distribution of road traffic accidents based on light condition from 2005 to 2011. Results showed
that the highest rate for accidents was in the dawn with 30% percentage share and the number of accidents was 2685
during 2010 whilst the sunset period showed 28% and the total number of accidents was 2456. Traffic accidents growth
during sunset is attributed to the electricity disruption in Iraq during the study period (2005-2011). Consequently, traffic
signals were out of order in the main and arterial roads and intersections thus resulted in absolute traffic collisions.
The rate of accidents in the day was significantly high as it approached 67% and the number of accidents was 6734
during 2011. This is attributed to many reasons like the absence of smart traffic signals, increase of number of vehicles,
increase the number of concrete obstacles which shortened the width of the road, the absence of surveillance camera
with accurate sensors, the degradation of road segments and the absence of road maintenance, the unavailability of
subways and intersections in one level, besides, the adolescence and teenager’s drivers who are driving without driving
license[20]. The accidents rate was significantly decreased in the night with 17% and a number of accidents were 1286
during 2009. This is attributed to the curfew through the night from (12am-5am) due to the hazardous security situation
in Iraq through the period (2005-2011). One of the major environmental non-behavioral factors which considerably
affect road traffic accidents is lighting conditions due to the visibility restrictions in darkness[21]. Based on the availability
of data, the numbers of RTAs for four light conditions within the day were recorded. The light conditions contain; dawn,
daylight, sunset, night without street light. The total number of RTAs for each light condition (at the time of the accident)
is involved in table 5. Although it was expected that the number of RTAs in the darkness would be higher than the
daylight condition, the result showed a dissimilarity. RTAs in the day light was higher than the night.
Table 5.The distribution of road traffic accidents based on light condition from 2005 to 2011
Years Dawn Percentage daylight Percentage Sun Percentage Night without Percentage Total
share % share % Set share % street light share %
2005 2015 22% 4235 47% 2356 26% 404 4% 9010
2006 958 28% 1414 42% 865 26% 152 4% 3389
2007 1452 46% 994 32% 455 15% 234 7% 3135
2008 1289 23% 2404 44% 1113 20% 696 13% 5502
2009 2103 28% 1698 23% 2365 32% 1286 17% 7452
2010 2685 30% 2678 30% 2456 28% 1042 12% 8861
2011 1076 11% 6734 67% 1320 13% 952 9% 10082
Max 2685 46% 6734 67% 2456 32% 1286 17%

Traffic accidents base on cities, road condition and nature of accident for 2005-2011

Table 6 illuminates the traffic accidents occurrence based on governorates, road condition, and nature of the accident.
It is obvious from table 6 that the collision accidents showed highest results 78 and 68 % in Baghdad and Babil city
consecutively and the number of accidents was 2098 and 1189 respectively for the wetted road. However, results were
rather approximated for the rest of the cities. Ratios for the overturn gave higher magnitudes in Al- Qadissiya, Baghdad,

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Babil, and Basrah city with (74, 70,61, 56) % consecutively the unavailability of road security precautions and the
and the number of accidents was (1094, 873, 839, and lack of pedestrians walk areas thus the pedestrians are
679) respectively for the wetted road. It indicates the walking in the streets along with the vehicles. Moreover,
absence of security precautions especially during rainy days the unavailability of precautions signs inside the cities and
hence vehicles will be slipped accordingly. Furthermore, especially near neighborhoods and schools. The wrong
lack of vision due to fog and severe weathering condition design for school’s locations as most of them adjoin the
plays the distinct role in increasing traffic accidents and main road [18], [22]. Therefore, run over accidents had
specifically overturn. Result for a run over accidents for increased nearby schools. The retreat of the driver’s traffic
the cities (Baghdad, Al-Najaf, Thi Qar, and Maysan) was consciousness had significantly contributed to the massive
(75, 65, 64, and 65) % respectively. The above result is growth of the road run over accidents.
related to many reasons like the availability of fewer curbs,
Table 6.Traffic accidents base on governorate, road condition and nature of the accident for the year
Governorate Road condition Collision %  Overturn % Crush %  Other Total
Nineveh dry 504 36% 179 54% 245 28% 0
wet 906 64% 147 45% 621 71%  
other 5 0% 4 1% 9 1%  
Total 1415   330   875   0 2620
Salahuddin dry 750 57% 154 45% 266 49%  
wet 545 42% 179 52% 275 51% 4
other 11 1% 8 2% 1 0%  
Total 1306   341   542   4 2193
Kirkuk dry 501 40% 124 41% 321 30%  
wet 749 60% 181 59% 749 70%  
other 0 0% 0 0 0 0%  
Total 1250   305   1070   0 2625
Diyala  dry 887 65% 128 34% 775 62%  
wet 468 35% 246 66% 483 38%  
other 1 0% 1 0%   0%  
Total 1356   375   1258   0 2989
Anbar dry 349 59% 273 46% 421 57%  
wet 244 41% 318 54% 323 43%  
other 2 0%   0% 1 0%  
Total 595   591   745   0 1931
Baghdad dry 574 21% 458 29% 458 25%    
wet 2098 78% 1094 70% 1400 75%  
other 2 0% 1 0% 1 0%  
Total 2674   1553   1859   0 6086
Babil dry 546 31% 873 61% 987 82%  
wet 1189 68% 564 39% 209 17%  
other 1 0% 2 0% 1 0%  
Total 1736   1439   1197   0 4372
Karbala dry 886 60% 455 56% 321 42%    
wet 579 40% 352 44% 436 58%  
other 0 0% 0 0%   0%  
Total 1465   807   757   0 3029

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Najaf dry 971 54% 254 35% 860 65%    

wet 832 46% 467 64% 450 34%  
other 2 0% 4 0% 3 1%  
Total 1805   725   1313   0 3843
Qadissiya dry 386 48% 296 26% 721 57% 1  
wet 425 52% 839 74% 547 43%  
other   0%   0%   0%  
Total 811   1135   1268   1 3215
Muthanna dry 542 56% 331 40% 236 38%  
wet 426 44% 487 59% 386 62% 2
other 5 2% 2 1% 2 0%  
Total 973   820   624   2 2419
Dhi Qar dry 356 62% 458 58% 879 57% 2  
wet 215 38% 328 42% 659 43% 1
other   0%   0%   0%  
Total 571   786   1538   3 2898
Wasit dry 231 55% 471 47% 419 38%    
wet 189 45% 539 53% 684 62%  
other   0%   0%   0%  
Total 420   1010   1103   0 2533
Maysan dry 254 49% 458 71% 786 65% 2
wet 265 51% 186 29% 428 35% 1
other   0%   0   0%  
Total 519   644   1214   3 2380
Basrah  dry 690 44% 524 43% 754 57% 3  
wet 868 56% 679 56% 569 43% 2
other 4 0% 2 0% 3 0%  
Total 1562   1205   1326   5 4098
    2098 78% 1094 74% 1400 82% 4 47231

Traffic accident according to the province and the
cause of the accidents
Table 7 shows results for the traffic accidents and the reason
for the accidents during (2005-2011) as obtained from the
national traffic office. Reasons for traffic accidents were
classified into (the road, the vehicle, the pedestrians, the
drivers and others). It is observed from Table 7 that the
highest accidents ratio was attributed to the driver and it
was 36% for Baghdad city and the number of accidents was
2379. Whilst Nineveh city recorded less accidents ratio with
22% and number of accident was 586. This is attributed to
the fact that the driver feels stressed and exhausted. Most
of the drivers paid less attention through driving mostly
because they are drunk, drug abusers or talking through the
phone which are the essential reasons for traffic accidents
now a day. Results for traffic ratio for vehicle were higher in
Baghdad city with 42% and number of accidents was 2579.
Whereas accident ratio was dropped to 22% in Anbar city
with total number of accidents 457. This related to the
less maintenance paid by the driver to the vehicle [23].
However, results for traffic ratio for showed higher result in
Nineveh with 22% and total number of accidents were 576.
However, traffic accidents ratio was dramatically dropped
to merely 4%. Road may contribute to traffic accidents if
it has dangerous curves, maintenance works on the road
or the unavailability of security procedures followed. In
addition, weathering like rain and fog may negatively affect
the road and increase the traffic accidents accordingly.

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Mohammed AA et al.
J. Adv. Res. Civil Envi. Engr. 2018; 5(1&2) 20

Table 7.Number of traffic accident according to the province and the cause of the accidents for year 2005-2011
Province Number of traffic accident according to the province and the cause of the
accidents for year 2005-2011
Cause of accident
The % The % The % Pedes- % Passengers % Others % Total
Road vehicle Driver trians
Nineveh 576 22% 543 21% 586 22% 422 16% 479 18% 14 1% 2620
Salahuddin 458 19% 574 24% 651 27% 450 19% 241 10% 19 1% 2393
Kirkuk 456 17% 572 22% 654 25% 487 19% 430 16% 26 1% 2625
Diyala  516 17% 682 23% 865 29% 478 16% 425 14% 23 1% 2989
Anbar 250 13% 457 24% 689 36% 296 15% 239 12% 0 0% 1931
Baghdad 241 4% 2579 42% 2479 41% 486 8% 256 4% 45 1% 6086
Babil 236 5% 1547 35% 1985 45% 370 8% 213 5% 21 0% 4372
Karbala 198 7% 1009 33% 1462 48% 214 7% 139 5% 7 0% 3029
Najaf 453 12% 1173 31% 1393 36% 458 12% 353 9% 13 0% 3843
Qadissiya 346 11% 988 31% 1185 37% 351 11% 345 11% 0 0% 3215
Muthanna 234 10% 742 31% 1009 42% 236 10% 187 8% 11 0% 2419
Dhi Qar 473 16% 943 33% 1016 35% 258 9% 201 7% 7 0% 2898
Wasit 289 11% 1009 40% 855 34% 175 7% 196 8% 9 0% 2533
Maysan 228 10% 982 41% 692 29% 214 9% 246 10% 18 1% 2380
Basrah 688 17% 1076 26% 1476 36% 489 12% 356 9% 13 0% 4098
Max 688 2579 2479 489 479 45 6759
Percentage 12% 31% 36% 11% 9% 0% 47431

Traffic Accidents by Governorate and Type of
Transport
Figure 7 showed the traffic accidents based on each
governorate and type of vehicle through (2005-2011), type
of vehicle covered in this study was (saloon, motorcycle,
pick up, lory, station, farm equipment, van, others). It is
evidenced from Figure 7 that saloon vehicle showed higher
results for traffic accidents with 26.3%. Baghdad city was
higher than the other cities, the number of accidents in
Baghdad was 1234 while the number of accidents was
significantly decreased to 425 in Al-Anbar city. This related
to the deterioration of traffic and transportation networks
and the absence of law application in the country due to
the deteriorated security situation [24], [25]. Moreover,
the exceeding speed approached 100km/ hr. resulted in
40% of the accidents. Results for motorcycle were the
highest 20.2% for Baghdad city with a total number of
accidents 1183. While Salahaldeen city represented the
fewer accidents 382. Saloon vehicles showed the highest
rate of accidents as well as compared with the other sorts
of vehicles.

Figure 7.Cumulative number of transport involved in traffic accidents

by governorate and type of transport for 2005-2011

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21
Conclusion and Future Recommendation
Based on the above analysis held on traffic accidents in
Iraq during (2005-2011) the following conclusions can be
drawn below:
• Traffic accidents in Iraq has been grown significantly
since 2005 from 9010 and peaked at 2011 with 22983
accidents thus fears on lives of society were risen due
to the massive increase in the traffic accidents. Traffic
accidents were relatively high in August, September,
October, November, and December.
• Baghdad city recorded highest rates for traffic accidents
comparatively with other Iraqis governorates. It is
because Baghdad city is the capital city in Iraq containing
the vital infrastructures and the governmental facilities.
Besides, it has the highest population growth.
• It was concluded that people age group 30-35 years
was the higher age group in recording traffic accident,
males showed higher records for traffic accidents
comparatively with their female counterpart
• It was demonstrated the traffic accidents were mostly
occurred during the time interval 6:00 am to 6:00 pm.
• Among the various kinds of accidents discussed in this
article, collision accidents showed the highest results.
However, overturn accidents showed less records
for the accidents. Regarding type of vehicles caused
traffic accidents, saloon vehicle showed higher results
for traffic accidents as well as compared with sorts of
vehicle addressed in this paper.
• Reasons for the traffic accidents were firstly attributed
to the driver, secondly to the type of the vehicle, thirdly
to the type of the road, fourthly the Pedestrians, and
fifthly to the Passengers.
• Prospectus traffic policy in Iraq should enhance the
fundamental standards for instant, good road design
and traffic management, improve vehicle standards,
speed control, the use of seat belts and helmets, and
the enforcement of alcohol limits. Current endeavors
to address the problems of road safety are minimal
comparatively with what it should be achieved. While
there are many interventions that can save lives,
political will and commitment at central state and
local government levels are essential. Road users in
Iraq deserve better and safer road travel.
• Advance precaution procedures should be adopted
in numerous parts of Iraq where multisectoral key
designs are prompting incremental diminishments in
the quantity of road accidental fatalities and injuries.
Such strategies focus on four key factors that contribute
to the risk of occurrence of a road accident exposure,
behavioral factors, road environment, and vehicle
factors. presumably, the minimum utilized of all road
safety wellbeing intercession systems are those that
intend to lessen presentation to danger. A hazard in
road traffic emerges out of a need to travel to a work or
Mohammed AA et al.
J. Adv. Res. Civil Envi. Engr. 2018; 5(1&2)
for training or recreation interests. In this manner, there
is a need to advance not just local economies such that
lessens the requirement for long separate travel yet
additionally independent minimized townships which
would diminish the requirement for short distance
travel within the urban areas.
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Date of Submission: 2018-06-07
Date of Acceptance: 2018-07-04