Let’s Leave These Issues to the Professionals: Ioannisyan on Speed Limits of 50 or 60 km/h

Daniel Ioannisyan, program coordinator of the 'Informed Citizens' NGO, responded to Yerevan Mayor Hayk Marutyan's proposal to reduce the maximum speed limit in Yerevan from 60 km/h to 50 km/h.

“Of course, you can set the maximum speed limit at 15 km/h, and probably there would never be road fatalities again. However, in the 21st century, issues are resolved through research. Studies show that road traffic safety has three components: 1. Informed and knowledgeable traffic participants, 2. Safe transportation vehicles, 3. Safe infrastructure.

In Armenia, people drive with unsecured passengers, tinted windows, overly bright headlights, 'left' braking switches, invisible markings and traffic signals, and 'purchased' driving licenses, among other issues. These factors are what kills people on the roads, not the speed limit of 50 or 60 km/h. I suggest we leave these matters to the professionals, for example, the National Road Safety Council,” he wrote on his Facebook page.