So how can we begin to resolve this issue? Chev Hak, deputy chief of Office of Traffic Police, provided some advice, stressing the importance of everybody respecting the traffic lights, whether night or day. He said that people who don’t obey the traffic law are the main cause of accidents.

He said that “at night the traffic is different than during the day, because there are more vehicles on the streets during the day.”

In response to young people, like Monirith, who dare not stop at traffic lights in case an accident occurs, he said: “Usually at night when the traffic lights turn to yellow and flash, it means we can continue to travel without stopping, but for those streets that show normal green and red lights, then we need to obey them as usual.”

He also blamed accidents on young people driving carelessly. He said: “Statistics show that over 50 per cent of traffic accident victims are young people between the ages of 15 and 29. This shows the carelessness in driving among the youth.”

Hak and his co-workers take it in turns to stand on main streets at night where traffic accidents happen frequently. But they don’t stand by the small streets.

He continued: “The youth are the backbone of the country. If you don’t respect the law, how can you even help to support the country? You should be role models. You should respect the law and your own ethics to make society safe and yourself a good citizen”.