Road safety awareness should be instilled in the younger generation in order to reduce road accidents involving the group, said Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.

Most of the road accidents involving teenagers were due to lack of awareness on road safety guidelines, he told Bernama here.

He was commenting on an incident in which eight teen cyclists were killed after they were mowed down by a car driven by a 22-year-old woman at 3am.

Another eight were injured, including two critically, in the accident which occurred along Jalan Lingkaran Dalam, Johor Bahru near the Mahmoodiah Muslim cemetery.

Lee, who is also the vice-chairman of the Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) also urged parents to monitor their children's whereabouts at all times.

Universiti Putra Malaysia's Safe Kids Malaysia executive director Assoc Prof Dr Kulanthayan KC Mani said cyclists were more exposed to the risk of fatal accident than pedestrians and motorcyclists.

Among the factors that lead to fatal accidents were not wearing helmet, high-visibility strips and clothing, said Kulanthayan.

"When you are cycling at night, you might not be noticed by other road users," he said. -- Bernama