Pattern of road traffic accidents in Nepal: A cross-sectional record review.

Authors

Minani Gurung, Olita Shilpakar, Lisasha Poudel, Bipsana Shrestha, Aakriti Poudel, Tai Anjuk Lama, Niranjan Panta, Bibek Giri

Published in

Journal of public health research. Volume 15. Issue 3. Pages 22799036261486665. Epub Sep 02, 2026.

Abstract

Road traffic accidents (RTAs) are a leading cause of mortality and disability in Nepal. Despite the scale of the problem, comprehensive province-level analyses covering recent years remain limited. This study describes the pattern of RTAs across all seven provinces of Nepal over four fiscal years.
A cross-sectional record review was conducted using RTA records obtained from Nepal Traffic Police departments across all provinces. Records spanning fiscal years 2020/21-2023/24 AD were analysed. Variables extracted included province and year of incident, urban/rural classification, driver age group, and vehicle type. Descriptive statistics were computed using SPSS version 20. Data for 2023/24 cover only the first five months of the fiscal year and should be interpreted with caution.
A total of 74,929 RTAs were recorded over the study period. Annual totals increased from 20,640 in 2020/21 to a peak of 24,537 in 2021/22, before declining modestly to 23,597 in 2022/23. The Kathmandu Valley consistently recorded the highest accident burden (10,733 in 2021/22; 10,675 in 2022/23). Drivers aged 25-40 years accounted for the largest proportion of recorded driver involvements with known age (58,614; 50.2%), followed by those aged 16-25 years (34,886; 29.9%). Motorcycles and scooters were the most commonly involved vehicle type. Urban areas accounted for 30,401 accidents (59.0% of accidents with known location), though rural predominance was observed in Madhesh and Koshi provinces.
RTAs in Nepal are concentrated among young and middle-aged adult drivers, predominantly involve two-wheeled vehicles, and exhibit marked urban-rural variation across provinces. These findings support age-targeted safety interventions, strengthened motorcycle helmet enforcement, and geographically differentiated road safety strategies.

PMID:
42694541
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 04 Sep 2026.

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