In a place as small as Bermuda, per capita figures can be very dangerous.

It is no accident that small countries like Dubai, Luxembourg and Bermuda regularly top the per capita income tables. They are wealthy, but they are also small enough to skew the figures upwards, whereas countries with tremendous resources or wealth generation abilities, like the US, will also have pockets of poverty to offset great economic power.

A doubling in the relatively small number of infant deaths in a year can skew infant mortality figures dramatically, only to have them return to normal a year later.

But there can be no doubt that Bermuda's roads remain among the most dangerous in the world, even in a "normal" year, and 2008 was not normal.

Only a month ago, this newspaper reported that with 15 road deaths, Bermuda had among the highest fatality rates per 100,000 population. There is a good argument to be made now, with 17 road deaths for the year, that Bermuda has the highest fatality rate of any western country at 27 or so deaths per 100,000 people.

That's a damning statistic, and worse, an entirely preventable one.

Government has begun to move on some of the recommendations in Dr. Joseph Froncioni's report, including graduated licensing for teen riders. Increases in Police manpower should also help to free up officers for traffic duties.

But other ideas need to be taken up as a matter of urgency.

Past editorials have dealt with many of them, but the need for roadblocks and random breath tests is obvious. It is widely accepted that many collisions are a result of alcohol or drug abuse. The best deterrent to drinking and driving is to make it clear that people can be stopped at any time, tested, arrested and banned from driving.

Similarly, there is no argument that almost everyone in Bermuda drives too fast and that the official speed limit is a joke. Speed cameras have now been promised for around 15 years. It is a national disgrace that they have not been installed, while the electronic vehicle registration (EVR) system, which is valuable but less important, has gone from conception to completion in half the time. What is holding this up?

There are other easy prevention methods as well. It is clear that seatbelts have been widely taken up and appear to have reduced the number of fatalities and serious injuries incurred by car passengers. But the Island still does not have a genuine safety standard for helmets and even when helmets are worn, they are often either unfastened or are strapped on so loosely so as to be no use at all in a crash. The Police need to enforce the law. It will save lives immediately.

This newspaper has discussed the fact that more powerful bikes have changed the nature of driving in Bermuda, but it is also worth noting that the doctoring of 50cc and 80cc bike engines makes them that more powerful again. At the same time, the decision to allow larger cars into the Island, and especially SUVs, has made some of the smaller roads danger zones for drivers and pedestrians alike. Does Bermuda really need these large vehicles? Similarly, trucks, including the controversial tractor trailers, make the roads more dangerous as well. Permitting larger and faster vehicles of all kinds on the roads has made them more dangerous. Some sanity on vehicle sizes is needed.

2009 is going to be celebrated for many things, but it is critical that it not become known as the year when road deaths set a modern, post-mandatory helmets record for road deaths.

If 17 people were murdered in a year, it would cause a national outcry. If 17 people died from a disease that was largely preventable, the heads of those responsible would roll.

And yet, when 17 people die on the roads – the worst fatality rate in the western world – and many of them would be preventable, it is a national scandal for which people should be held accountable.

This newspaper calls on the Governor as the person accountable for the Police, the Police Commissioner, the Premier in his role as Transport Minister and the Health Minister (because 17 deaths is a very big public health problem) to come together as a matter of urgency to implement these simple steps before anyone else dies. IF they don't, then they should be held personally responsible for those who die in 2009.