Driving on the defense is a must in the Dominican Republic; 3,180 traffic accidents reported

[Dolores]

The Ministry of Public Works’s Military and Police Commission (Comipol) patrols main roads. Its road assistance reports assisting indicate that it has assisted 128,000 vehicle drivers, on average more than 700 calls for help on the country’s main highways in the first half of the year.

The Comipol statistics indicate 3,180 traffic accidents occurred in the first half of 2023. Of these, 1,446 were due to road slides, 1,438 to crashes, 155 to rollovers and 145 were people that were run over.

Likewise, the Comipol’s emergency medical, pre-hospital and rescue program offered 1,032 medical assistances, 858 transfers, 49 vehicle extractions or release of vehicles and 31 special missions.

The press release explains that the most common assistance was to people involved in accidents, mechanical breakdowns, and those that needed towing, extrication of their vehicles or ambulance services. Flat...

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[chico bill]

Well the article seems different that the title but Driving Defensively in DR is absolutely a must.

As more Chinese bikes are being dumped here, creating more unlicensed/uninsured idiots, hoards of racing juveniles doing wheelies and running red lights it is getting much worse than even a few years ago and way worse than 10 years ago.
We may be approaching critical mass

 

[NanSanPedro]

3180 in 6 months for the whole country? Seems muy light. I thought maybe that was the daily rate in SD.

 

[Peterj]

This same MOPC is often the cause of (almost) accidents, driving 50km/h (or less) on the Coral Highway.

 

[XQT]

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Many of DR drivers are absolute dangerous idiots.
One can only hope they kill themselves without involving others.
Kamikaze drivers.
Competent policing non existent, just looking for bribes.

 

[chico bill]

Many of DR drivers are absolute dangerous idiots.
One can only hope they kill themselves without involving others.
Kamikaze drivers.
Competent policing non existent, just looking for bribes.

I don't wish them that but I wish their motos to be siezed if they run red lights, do wheelies or ride without working lights, mirrors or race in and out of traffic endangering others.
Pedo Clisante in Sosua has become a drag strip.
It won't be long until some pedestrians are mowed down.

 

[Gadfly]

Defensive driving does not exist in the DR.

 

[chico bill]

Defensive driving does not exist in the DR.

It's spelled offensive

 

[Ecoman1949]

Defensive driving does not exist in the DR.

I agree. I’ve driven defensively in some dense traffic conditions in European cities over the years but nothing prepared me for driving in the DR. There’s no way to drive defensively. I’ve driven the main highways and country roads and seen some very dangerous situations by drivers with a don’t give a rat‘s ass mentality. The rule of thumb seems to be the bigger the vehicle the crazier the driver. Throw in potholes the size of subcompacts and cattle standing in the middle of the road at night and the danger increases significantly. There no way to resolve the dangerous DR driver problem in a country where moto drivers start disregarding road rules when they’re barely out of the womb.

 

[rodrigito]

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David Collado (DR Tourism Czar at time of this post) is nothing more than a puppet of the elite class who essentially is deceiving tourists about the DR being a safe place. He promotes travel as if it is safe to drive and do backpacking in a country with an alarming rate of traffic related deaths.

The road assistance (MOCP) was a step in the right direction but nevertheless, the animals on the road are a reflection of a country with very little education, high severe crimes rate and non-existent leadership. Very dangerous to drive there.

Having Visited Cuba and El Salvador, I was blow away how safe it is to walk and drive in both countries. I am originally from the DR and must admit, Cuba and El Salvador are top on my list.

List of countries by traffic-related death rate - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[chico bill]

David Collado (DR Tourism Czar at time of this post) is nothing more than a puppet of the elite class who essentially is deceiving tourists about the DR being a safe place. He promotes travel as if it is safe to drive and do backpacking in a country with an alarming rate of traffic related deaths.

The road assistance (MOCP) was a step in the right direction but nevertheless, the animals on the road are a reflection of a country with very little education, high severe crimes rate and non-existent leadership. Very dangerous to drive there.

Having Visited Cuba and El Salvador, I was blow away how safe it is to walk and drive in both countries. I am originally from the DR and must admit, Cuba and El Salvador are top on my list.

List of countries by traffic-related death rate - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Pretty Pathetic that DR is only topped by chaotic poor African countries many with poor roads (but barely topped in deaths per 100,000).
Is this a reflection of pure crap drivers, lack of real traffic policing or horrendous trauma care - I propose it is all 3.
And it is getting rapidly worse here. Aggressive drivers and law breaking & unlicensed moto drivers which are exploding in numbers

 

[aarhus]

David Collado (DR Tourism Czar at time of this post) is nothing more than a puppet of the elite class who essentially is deceiving tourists about the DR being a safe place. He promotes travel as if it is safe to drive and do backpacking in a country with an alarming rate of traffic related deaths.

The road assistance (MOCP) was a step in the right direction but nevertheless, the animals on the road are a reflection of a country with very little education, high severe crimes rate and non-existent leadership. Very dangerous to drive there.

Having Visited Cuba and El Salvador, I was blow away how safe it is to walk and drive in both countries. I am originally from the DR and must admit, Cuba and El Salvador are top on my list.

List of countries by traffic-related death rate - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Cuba a left wing dictatorship and El Salvador a right wing dictatorship. I certainly prefer the DR.

 

[Ecoman1949]

The Wikipedia data is old. Since the study, the number of vehicles on DR roads has increased and the number of dangerous moto drivers now behind the wheel of autos, trucks, and buses has also increased. The Wikipedia data is not a true reflection of the current magnitude of the problem in the DR. A problem that will increase exponentially as the population increases. The problems that create the danger are obvious and have been discussed at length here. Decades of police neglecting the root causes have ingrained bad driving behaviour In DR drivers.

Really, all one can do is drive as safely as you can and pray you survive long enough to get there and back safely. The first time I rented a car I tried to be courteous and follow the road rules. Nearly got rear ended twice stopping to let people cross in the crosswalks, nearly got t-boned by drivers running red lights, and driven into the ditch a few times by truck drivers hogging the tight country road turns. I learned to mentally adapt and drive with blend of Dominican and North American driver styles.

When I was a teenager, my father bought a rugged 4WD, Willys Jeep pickup. Heavy steel chassis, and good road clearance. You could hit the sheet metal with a hammer and hardly dent it. There were many times I wished I was driving it on the DR roads, especially when I’m exiting the Puerto Plata malecon and trying to get past Jumbo to get to Sosua. Most times it’s a sphincter wrenching experience. So far luck has been on my side. Got hit there by a moto driver once and no damage to the rental vehicle.

Driving in the DR is what it is. Drive or don’t drive. There are lots of public transport options. I like exploring the diverse DR coastal areas and visiting my friends in the campo. I accept the risks. It’s also risky walking down Pedro Clisante on a busy night or frequenting the Puerto Plata malecon on the weekends. Doesn’t stop me from doing it.

 

[NanSanPedro]

There are a few things that I may never get used to:

1. Passing motos on the right.
2. Pedestrians crossing the autopista.
3. Drivers driving the wrong way.

When you those to the non-signaling lane changes and the maybe I'm changing lanes and maybe I'm not, together with I think I'll park here in the middle of the road because I want to, you have very dangerous scenarios.

The motos running red lights don't bother me too much, as long as I don't hit one.