PNP-HPG to create new unit for road crash probe

Photo from Aguinaldo Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Office

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police’s (PNP) Highway Patrol Group (HPG) is planning to create a special road crash investigation division, an officer of its unit said on Wednesday.

“We are actually going to develop the first in the country. Sa Pilipinas po ito, Major Road Crash Investigation Division – meaning a dedicated investigation division to determine the real cause of road crash,” Lt. Col. Oliver Tanseco, Chief of PNP-HPG Operations Management Division, told reporters in an ambush interview at the PNP-HPG Headquarters.

Tanseco also noted that they are planning to increase PNP-HPG personnel to 12,000 to boost efforts for road safety and security.

“We are eyeing plans to submit a proposal for reorganization and restructuring, meaning we will increase the number of our personnel to make us capable not only for road safety but also road security,” Tanseco said.

PNP-HPG’s data showed P4.381 billion worth of “total economic loss and societal harm” from road crashes in the last 90 days.

Tanseco said they were able to collect this data via a “geodot system” called Data for Road Incident Visualization Evaluation and Reporting System (DRIVERS) which reported analysis of road crash incidents in the Philippines.