During a pivotal senate debate on the newly introduced Fatal Accidents Bill 2026, Government Senator Shaquan O’Neill delivered a urgent call for improved driver accountability on Monday, laying out stark official data that confirms men make up the disproportionate majority of people injured in road traffic collisions across Antigua and Barbuda.
Addressing the upper legislative chamber, O’Neill shared verified figures compiled by the Statistics Unit of the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda’s Traffic Department to underscore the urgent need for updated legislation and heightened public awareness. The data reveals that in 2023, out of 337 total people harmed in road crashes across the nation, 206 of those injured were men. The following year, the trend held consistent: 239 of the 417 people injured in collisions were male. O’Neill emphasized that this persistent demographic pattern cannot be sidelined by national policymakers, as road safety continues to rank among the country’s most pressing public safety priorities.
Beyond injury figures, O’Neill outlined the growing overall volume of road incidents in recent years. Antigua and Barbuda documented 2,448 traffic collisions and 10 crash-related fatalities in 2023. That total rose to 2,610 collisions in 2024, though the number of deaths fell to five that year. By 2025, reported collisions had climbed further to 2,749, with nine fatalities recorded over the 12-month period. While O’Neill acknowledged that the Fatal Accidents Bill 2026 covers all categories of wrongful death — including industrial incidents and medical malpractice — he stressed that road traffic crashes stand as one of the most prevalent and preventable causes of fatal accidental deaths in the nation.
“We cannot simply overlook that this is the leading cause of fatal accidents,” O’Neill told the chamber, before sharing a firsthand account that reinforced his push for reform. The senator recounted a recent experience responding to the scene of a hit-and-run collision, after a colleague contacted him to report a pedestrian had been struck by a departing driver. “I took it upon myself, Madam President, to not only call the emergency services, but to also race to the scene. I could not believe that someone could be so wicked. To not only hit someone, but to also drive away,” he said.
O’Neill explained that experiences like this firsthand encounter underscore the critical need for both broader public education around responsible driving and updated legislation that delivers meaningful support and compensation to families that lose a loved one due to another road user’s negligence. Following the debate, the Fatal Accidents Bill 2026 secured final approval from the Senate, replacing Antigua and Barbuda’s century-old 1924 Fatal Accidents Act with a modernized legal framework for handling wrongful death compensation claims.