On Sunday, the car in which Cyrus Mistry, former Tata Sons chairman and three others were traveling rammed into the parapet wall of a bridge over the Surya river on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway. Mistry was sitting in the back seat with Jehangir Pandole. Both lost their lives in this accident.
Road accidents are an epidemic that kills approximately 1.35 million people every year. According to National Crime Records Bureau data, 155,622 people were killed and 371,884 injured in 403,116 road accidents in India in 2021 alone. More than 60% of these deaths occurred on national and state highways; 63% of all deaths occurred in the 18-45 age group. What makes our road safety picture particularly grim is that India not only ranks the top global road accident fatalities, but also has the highest global accident severity at 38.6 deaths per 100 accidents in 2021. Last year’s figure is also the highest. The level of seriousness of accident in India has been recorded during the last two decades.
Official records and forensic investigations of road accidents by the SaveLife Foundation have helped to identify some of the primary reasons behind our high tolls. The most important is over-speeding, which caused 87,050 deaths in 2021. Near its heels was dangerous or reckless driving that resulted in the loss of 42,853 lives. Other major causes include driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol, mechanical defects in vehicles, driver fatigue, lack of infrastructure and rear-end collisions with illegally parked vehicles on the shoulder of the road. Causes of accidents should be divided by causes of subsequent injuries and deaths, vehicular, behavioral and other risks should be analyzed in addition to life saving issues after the accident.
With such number of fatalities, targeted measures are the need of the hour to ensure maximum road safety for all types of users. As India develops faster and better highways, we must deploy systems optimized for high-speed corridors. Such highways equally require adequate crash barriers to protect the users in the event of an accident. Similarly, we need more road signs in the right size and placed at appropriate intervals to convey speed limits (and their changes), giving road users enough time and space to pay attention and act accordingly. So to receive. Other infrastructural elements that need attention on high-speed stretches are protection of exposed rigid structures, closing unauthorized gaps in the middle, ensuring against poor road construction and maintenance, and protecting pedestrians at intersections and vulnerable areas. and to make provisions for road safety.
Optimal and robust speed enforcement is of the utmost importance to ensure that speed limits and other safety regulations are followed. This can be ensured through proactive traffic-rule enforcement using both manual and electronic surveillance, including high-visibility and high-speed patrol vehicles, drones and speed tracking cameras, particularly within high-risk areas. and further.
While these pre-emptive measures are essential for the prevention of road accidents, simultaneous action is necessary to ensure a prompt trauma response and emergency medical care system. Deployment of ambulances close to high-fatality areas, advanced ambulances that can support road accident victims in transit and a proper triage system that ensures minimal loss of time in referring patients to their specialized care are essential. Huh. The current emergency care system in India is archaic and requires a dramatic change to reduce the loss of life.
A speed management study should also be done to establish an appropriate speed limit. These studies should cover all elements associated with our highways, including the mix of vehicles using them and their mode-wise speed limits, as well as design elements from a civil engineering perspective. Understanding the terrain of high-speed corridors as well as the areas they pass through, in addition to all connecting roads and subways, are essential in mapping the road user base of these stretches. This will help in figuring out what limits as well as where checks and balances need to be posted.
On the part of road users, elements that require cognizance and caution include the driver’s ability to drive vehicles on high-speed sections, such as the front and rear seat belts (or helmet in case of two). wheeled), staying within the speed limit and designated lanes, and never driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
For better vehicle safety, urgently necessary measures include a vigorous permanent car safety assessment rating system on the lines of the India New Car Assessment Program launched by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways of India through a draft notification dated 24 June 2022. . Six airbags in all-passenger four-wheelers and a rear seat belt alarm system are measures that require standardization across the board to ensure stable structures that provide adequate protection and prevent life-threatening injuries and deaths. reduce the chances.
Industry protests for those mandates are safety barriers that require a firm government stance, followed by laws and regulations aimed at safe vehicles to ensure safe movement for every road user.
High speed traffic corridors are essential for the overall development of a nation, so there is no debate with them. However, working towards ensuring the safety of road users is of paramount importance to ensure that our highways and other roads function as intended and contribute to the economic development of the country.
Piyush Tiwari is the founder and CEO of SaveLife Foundation, a non-profit organization.
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