ASTARA -- An official with the Ministry of Roads and Transportation announced here Tuesday that the annual death toll on Iranian roads stands at 19,000.

Deputy Minister of Roads and Transportation for Parliamentary Affairs Amin Bayanak described the conditions of Iranian roads as poor, and stressed the need to launch comprehensive projects to improve them.

Iranian roads are some of the most hazardous in the world. Traffic experts blame the high rate of accidents on dilapidated vehicles and drivers' carelessness.

Run-down vehicles, insufficient emergency aid, lack of communication facilities to swiftly relay information on traffic-related accidents and inadequate emergency centers on roads are the main causes of the high death toll from road accidents in Iran.