The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has released its 2025 annual and festive-season road traffic statistics, showing an increase in road crashes and injuries nationwide, despite a slight decline in fatalities.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed said the data showed a troubling upward trend in road traffic incidents nationwide.
“Total crashes across the country increased by 9.2 per cent, from 9,570 in 2024 to 10,446 in 2025,” he said.
Mohammed noted that serious crashes also increased by 10.5 per cent, rising from 6,131 cases in 2024 to 6,772 in 2025. Minor crashes saw an even sharper increase of 17.5 per cent, climbing from 907 to 1,066 within the same period.
The corps marshal added that the number of people injured in road crashes rose by 7.2 per cent, from 31,154 in 2024 to 33,400 in 2025.
However, he pointed out that fatalities declined slightly.
“The number of persons killed declined from 5,421 to 5,289, representing a 2.4 per cent reduction,” Mohammed said.
The corps marshal explained that the reduction indicated improvements in post-crash response, but stressed that it fell short of the corps’ strategic target of a 10 per cent reduction in fatalities.
“While this reduction confirms that post-crash response interventions are working, it fell short of the corps’ strategic target of a 10 per cent fatality reduction and confirms that the challenge before us is no longer response alone, but prevention, compliance and deterrence,” he explained.
Mohammed also disclosed that traffic offences increased in 2025, reflecting higher road exposure and risky driving behaviour.
“The number of offenders arrested increased from 453,304 in 2024 to 581,332 in 2025, representing an increase of 128,028 arrests, which translates to a 28.3 per cent rise.
“Similarly, offences booked rose from 496,799 in 2024 to 648,918 in 2025, an increase of 152,119 offences, amounting to a 30.6 per cent increase.
“This upward trend reflects intensified patrol operations, improved surveillance, and a more robust enforcement strategy aimed at promoting road discipline and enhancing overall safety on Nigerian roads,” the corps marshal explained.
According to the report, passenger and vehicle movement also increased during the year. Passenger traffic rose from 45.16 million in 2024 to 47.47 million in 2025, while the number of vehicles travelling increased from 3.65 million to 3.74 million. Luxury bus operations expanded from 26,728 to 29,844 trips, and total kilometres covered rose from 4.07 billion to 4.88 billion kilometres.
The corps marshal further stated that the December 2025 festive operation period (December 15–January 15) saw increases across key crash indicators.
“Total road traffic crashes rose from 665 in 2024/2025 to 687 in 2025/2026, representing a 3.4 per cent increase. The number of persons involved increased from 5,761 to 5,942, while fatalities rose from 571 to 597, a 4.2 per cent increase. Injuries also increased from 2,462 to 2,522,” he explained.
He added that the number of people rescued without injury increased from 2,697 to 2,792, noting that “these figures demonstrate that while interventions saved lives, risky road user behaviour continues to undermine safety during peak travel periods.”
Mohammed identified several corridors that recorded deadly crashes during the festive period, including Benin–Asaba–Awka, which recorded 12 deaths; Zuba–Kaduna–Zaria, with 39 deaths; Jos–Bauchi–Gombe–Darazo–Potiskum, which claimed 49 lives; Abuja–Lokoja, with 28 deaths; Mai Adua–Daura–Kazaure–Dambata, with 18 deaths; and Enugu–Umuahia–Aba, where 11 fatalities were recorded.
The corps marshal added, “These largely avoidable crashes were primarily caused by speeding, dangerous overtaking, loss of control, tyre burst and brake failure—clear indicators of reckless driving and poor vehicle condition,” he explained.
He explained speeding remained the single greatest threat on Nigerian roads, accounting for 41 per cent of crashes in December 2025.
“Causation analysis remains unequivocal. Speed limit violations accounted for 41 per cent of all identified causes of road traffic crashes in December 2025.
“Speed remains the single greatest threat to life on Nigerian roads. The data is clear: speed kills, indiscipline sustains crashes, and disciplined enforcement saves lives,” he said.
During the December festive period, the number of offenders apprehended rose from 28,170 in the 2024/2025 season to 29,317 in 2025/2026, while recorded offences increased from 31,829 to 33,190. Mohammed attributed the trend to a deliberate shift towards firmer and more visible enforcement.
To address the rising trend in crashes, the FRSC announced new policy directives for 2026, including intelligence-led enforcement, zero tolerance for major traffic offences and stricter speed management, particularly for commercial vehicles.
Mohammed stressed that while improved post-crash response saved lives in 2025, the corps’ priority in the coming year would be prevention, behavioural compliance and rigorous enforcement to reduce both crashes and fatalities nationwide.
He explained, “The corps will implement the following policy directions as standing operational orders: First, all Commands shall transition from routine patrols to intelligence-led, risk-based enforcement.
“The corps will enforce zero tolerance on the ‘Big Five’ offences responsible for over 70 per cent of fatal and serious crashes: speed violation, dangerous driving, drunk or drug-impaired driving, wrong-way driving, and overloading.
“Speed management will be elevated from routine enforcement to national operational priority. Full compliance with the installation of speed limit devices on all commercial vehicles will be enforced, including re-certification audits and public sanctioning of non-compliant fleet operators.
“Public enlightenment will shift from general awareness to behaviour-change communication, with segmented messaging for commercial drivers, private motorists, motorcyclists and fleet operators.”
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