A deadly 24 hours on Sri Lanka’s roads has pushed the 2026 death toll to 64, as a string of crashes involving buses, motorcycles, cars, and pedestrians highlights the country’s worsening road safety crisis.
Sri Lankan police confirmed that 12 people lost their lives in road accidents across the island during the past 24 hours, raising the total number of road fatalities since January 1, 2026, to 64. The incidents involved buses, motorcycles, cars, three wheelers, and pedestrians, once again exposing persistent road safety risks nationwide.
In Murushamutei on the Paranthan Mullaitivu road, four people were killed when a bus collided with a motorcycle. In Oyamaduwa, Anuradhapura, a collision between a three wheeler and a motorcycle claimed one life and left seven others injured, with the wounded admitted to Anuradhapura Hospital.
Three people died in Navadankulama, Mundalama, Puttalam, after a head on collision between a car and a van killed two women and one man. Another passenger sustained injuries and was hospitalized. Additional fatalities were reported from Bogambara, Radawadunna, Potthogoda, and Attavilluwa.
A 65 year old woman was killed by a private bus near the Bogambara bus terminal, while an 81 year old Polonnaruwa resident died after being struck by a cab on the Colombo Kandy road. Other deaths included a motorcycle collision near the Potthogoda cemetery on the Negombo Mirigama road and a crash between a motorcycle and a lorry on a bypass road in Attavilluwa, Puttalam.
