The seemingly rosy picture depicted by our accident statistics cannot cover up the failure of our transportation system. The paper explains how a major flaw in the definition of fatality can distort our accident data to persuade us that the state of road safety in the country is satisfactory. The major causes of accidents related to the road, the driver, and the vehicle are identified. While safe vehicles and good roads are vitally important /or safety, the key element in accident prevention is still the driver him/herself A vehicle or highway defect may also play a part, but the principal cause is generally a human failure. Recommendations are presented to improve traffic safety on the road.