Not a single traffic accident involving minors was recorded near schools from January to March 2025, announced the Road Safety Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs during a press tour on Friday.

Reportedly, there are currently 10,770 schools in the country, with the number of students at nearly 6.7 million.

“As part of the Safe Childhood program, 208 button traffic lights and 217 portable (mobile) traffic lights were erected near schools. Based on French experience, 865 elevated zebra crossings were equipped. 1,599 speed bumps, 7,598 metal fences and 109 cameras were installed near schools,” said Farrukh Mirzaboev, senior inspector of the Road Safety Department group for cooperation with educational institutions.

According to him, special classes for teaching traffic rules have been created in 5,150 schools, and more than 42,300 “safe route maps” have been developed for students.

“Patrol department officers have been assigned to schools along roadsides. They begin their service at 7:00 a.m. and are responsible for children crossing the road. As a result of these works, not a single accident involving minors occurred in front of schools in the first quarter of this year,” said Farrukh Mirzaboev.

As reported by the Road Safety Department, the following measures are planned to be implemented in 2025 as part of the “Safe Childhood” program:

On highways:

• installation of 3,224 road signs;
• creating a total of 325-km long of sidewalks;
• construction of 28 underground or overground zebra crossings;
• installation of radars near 410 schools.

On city streets: 

• installation of 320 raised zebra crossings and 650 speed bumps;
• installation of 272 traffic lights with a button;
• construction of 197 km of sidewalks;
• launching traffic safety classes in 2491 schools.

In November 2024, the UNICEF, together with the office of the Children's Ombudsperson of Uzbekistan, presented an analysis of the situation of children and adolescents in Uzbekistan. It indicated an increase in the number of deaths and injuries among minors as a result of road accidents. The lack of detailed and up-to-date statistics was identified as one of the main problems. 

Children's Ombudsperson Surayo Rakhmonova is working with the Road Safety Department to reduce road risks for children. In May, at a meeting with the head of the Road Safety Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Sherzod Ibragimov, she emphasized that, despite the expansion of measures to ensure the safety of children on the roads, they are still not enough, and the issue should be considered comprehensively.