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Road Safety in India
The problem of road fatalities is now considered to be a serious global phenomenon with governments and authorities in virtually all countries showing concern over the growing number of road injuries and accidents. The World Bank estimates the number of road accidents around the world to rise to about 20 Lakh per year by 2020.
Sadly, road accidents are a routine occurrence on Indian roads. Thousands of people are losing their lives on city roads every day and the twisted metal of smashed cars and motorbikes is a strong testament to this. Everyday families are losing loved ones to something that seems to never be overcome by time and tide. The fact that these deaths could be prevented with better road safety and improved driving adds to the pain and suffering of these families.
Sadly, road accidents are a routine occurrence on Indian roads. Thousands of people are losing their lives on city roads every day and the twisted metal of smashed cars and motorbikes is a strong testament to this. Everyday families are losing loved ones to something that seems to never be overcome by time and tide. The fact that these deaths could be prevented with better road safety and improved driving adds to the pain and suffering of these families.
India's Road Death Toll
In India, according to the World Bank reports, about 1 Lakh people were killed in road accidents in the year 2007 and among these about forty youngsters died every day. The toll is not just on life but also on the country's economy. The World Bank report estimates that road accidents cost India about 3% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Road accidents place a tremendous expense on health care services, costs of providing rehabilitation, value of lost household services, lost earnings of victims, and lost income of survivors in the respective families. These costs directly impact the country's economy by burdening the financial resources of the country.
Road fatalities are considered a serious public health issue and are gradually overtaking deadly diseases like tuberculosis and AIDS. Due to the widespread impact, the issue of road accidents has been termed a global epidemic.
In India, according to the World Bank reports, about 1 Lakh people were killed in road accidents in the year 2007 and among these about forty youngsters died every day. The toll is not just on life but also on the country's economy. The World Bank report estimates that road accidents cost India about 3% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Road accidents place a tremendous expense on health care services, costs of providing rehabilitation, value of lost household services, lost earnings of victims, and lost income of survivors in the respective families. These costs directly impact the country's economy by burdening the financial resources of the country.
Road fatalities are considered a serious public health issue and are gradually overtaking deadly diseases like tuberculosis and AIDS. Due to the widespread impact, the issue of road accidents has been termed a global epidemic.
Causes of Road Accidents
Various factors contribute to the increasing number of car accidents and road fatalities. Some of the notable ones are as follows:
Various factors contribute to the increasing number of car accidents and road fatalities. Some of the notable ones are as follows:
- Increasing number of vehicles: As the Indian economy is rapidly expanding, the roads continuously see a large number of new cars, bikes, buses, and trucks. The sales of passenger vehicles in India are projected at 20 Lakh units by 2010 and that of commercial vehicles at 10 Lakh units. The ever increasing vehicles plough through the same narrow and congested city roads.
- Creaking infrastructure: Poorly maintained Indian roads with abundant potholes, bumps, and cracks easily qualify as biggest contributors to increasing road deaths. Thankfully, the Indian Government has already taken note of this and has planned a huge investment for road development over the next five years.
- Untrained drivers: Safe driving requires a high level of concentration, perception, judgement, and understanding. If a driver is well aware of road conditions, driving patterns, and technologies outfitted in vehicles, the chances of accidents are considerably reduced.
- Cars lacking key safety features: Though all car manufacturers provide well test safety features on their cars, most models in the cheaper car segments lack essential active and safety features due to the cost factor. Base variants of car models rarely come equipped with essential features such as ABS and Airbags that have time and again proven their usefulness in saving lives and minimizing damage.
- Ignorance towards road safety: A quick look at past road accidents reveals a pattern where several accidents have similar or same contributing factors. The repetition of mistakes only shows that no lessons have been learnt from the past. Many drivers are either ignorant about the common causes of road accidents or choose to ignore them for some reason. To overcome this, car manufacturers across the world have designed cars with more advanced car safety technologies but Indian car buyers still consider low costing fuel-efficient vehicles.
Strategies to Prevent Road Accidents
Various measures can be taken to implement better road safety but before that, the government, automobile manufacturers, associated institutions, and most importantly the people need to believe that road accidents are largely avoidable. They need to take a pro-active and preventive approach to reduce loss of life and property.
Here are some of the best accident prevention strategies for road safety:
Various measures can be taken to implement better road safety but before that, the government, automobile manufacturers, associated institutions, and most importantly the people need to believe that road accidents are largely avoidable. They need to take a pro-active and preventive approach to reduce loss of life and property.
Here are some of the best accident prevention strategies for road safety:
- Make Vehicles Safer: The first thing that every car manufacturer should do is to increase the list of standard safety features on their models. The government and the people can ensure this by making important automobile safety features mandatory.
- Sustainable Transport System: An efficient and cost conscious public transport system is of great significance in encouraging people to travel in their own vehicles.
- Improved Infrastructure: Improving the road conditions in the country is of utmost importance. The initiative for this lies with the Government and also the people. Infrastructure improvement does not just include the filling up of potholes and cracks in roads but also the addition of street lights, safe crossings, and footpaths for pedestrians.
- Impart Driving Skills: More number of driving schools need be inaugurated to impart best driving skills and training to all those who desire to drive. Maruti Suzuki, a leading car manufacturer, is a leading supporter of road safety and has set an example by establishing many driving schools across the country. Recently, Maruti also introduced the National Road Safety Mission according to which the company promises to train about 5 Lakh unskilled drivers over a period of five years.
- Enforcing Speed Limits: Indian government and traffic authorities have set speed limits for various different vehicles on roads. Unfortunately, there are very few who follow these rules and even fewer who enforce the safety regulations. The upper limits on speed need to be optimized to regulate traffic and improve road safety.
- Strict Action against Faulty Driving: Traffic authorities should take strict action against those who violate traffic rules and regulations. A strong approach should be taken to discourage all activities termed dangerous while driving such as the consumption of alcohol or usage of mobile phones.
