11 killed, 15 injured in Myanmar's highway crashes in February

Myanmar highway crashes

YANGON, March 6 (Xinhua) -- Eleven people were killed and 15 others injured in traffic accidents on Myanmar's Yangon-Mandalay highway in February this year, the Nay Pyi Taw Expressway Traffic Police Force said on Monday.

The figure was up compared to that registered in January when eight people were killed and 13 others injured in the traffic accidents occurred on the same highway, official data showed.

A total of 12 road crashes occurred on the busiest highway in Myanmar in February, causing damage of 14.15 million kyats (over 6,738 U.S. dollars), it added.

The 587-km highway, connecting the country's commercial city Yangon and the second largest city of Mandalay, was inaugurated in December 2010.

Human errors such as overspeeding and negligent driving are mostly blamed for the highway accidents in the Southeast Asian country.

Last year, a total of 57 people were killed and 280 others injured in 169 road crashes on the Yangon-Mandalay highway, official figures showed.