Bali Talks of Rampant Traffic Accidents Involving Foreign Tourists

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Many traffic accidents that occurred in Bali involved foreign tourists. Bali Regional Police recorded there were 68 cases of road accidents involving foreign nationals throughout 2022.

“In 2022, foreign tourists were involved in 68 traffic accidents. Four of them died, none suffered serious damage, and 86 got minor injuries. The material losses reached Rp267.7 million,” said Bali Police’s Traffic Directorate official, Comr. Rahmawaty Ismail, on Tuesday, February 28, 2023.

According to her, most of the accidents occurred in tourist sites, such as Canggu of Kuta and Sukawati of Gianyar. In detail, based on the Bali Police data, 23 cases occurred in Gianyar, 18 cases in Denpasar, 13 cases in Badung, seven cases in Karangasem, three cases in Buleleng, three cases in Klungkung, and one case in Jembrana.

The accidents were generally related to drunk driving, lack of driving skills, and pure accidents with other vehicles.

Rahmawaty thus demanded vehicle rental service providers disseminate traffic regulations, starting from the mandatory of possessing a driving license and driving equipment. “Vehicle rental service providers must be concerned about this.”

Other than traffic accidents, the police often warned and issued tickets against traffic violators. “The most visible violation is not wearing a helmet or wearing inappropriate clothing when riding such as beach suits,” Rahmawaty added.

She did not deny that many foreign tourists committed traffic violations while traveling on the Island of Gods, besides violations of local customs and rules.

Therefore, Bali provincial government was determined to disseminate various regulations to foreign tourists by installing billboards in foreign languages. “We are tasked by the government, Bali Tourism Agency, to prepare socialization in the form of written and visual means,” said Bali Tourism Board (BTB) head Ida Bagus Agung Partha Adnyana.

According to Bagus, the billboards will be installed in Denpasar, Badung, and Gianyar. “The point is for tourists to respect Balinese customs by wearing appropriate clothing, orderly following traffic rules, and not doing business or working in Bali,” he underlined.

ANTARA

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