Road accidents have been a major cause for concern across the Indian subcontinent. In 2022 alone, the country reported nearly 169 thousand fatalities due to road accidents. Each year, about three to five percent of the country’s GDP was invested in road accidents. Notably, while India has about one percent of the world’s vehicle population, it also accounted for about six percent of the global road traffic incidents. Almost 70 percent of the accidents involved young Indians.

Cases and causes

Two-wheelers had the maximum involvement in fatal road accidents across the country in 2018. A major portion of the accidents that year occurred at T-junctions. Over speeding has been a cause for concern throughout the country regardless of day or night-time. Moreover, fast and risky maneuvers and illegal street races on roads and highways not designed for the purpose created significant trouble for the police. Over 65 percent of the accidents occurred on straight roads. Additionally, state highways had a share of about 25 percent of the total road accidents in 2018.

Future scenario

Roughly around 17 accident-related deaths occur across India every hour. Fewer cops and empty roads at night, and sometimes even during the day seem to enable motorists to do away with the traffic rules. However, efforts were made to reduce these discrepancies. The police had equipped themselves with night vision speed guns to identify the culprits. Over speeding fine was increased in the amendment of the Motor Vehicles Act as well. The road network has played a crucial role in India’s economic development and the government is likely to continue to invest resources in making road safety a vital component of everyday commute.

In 2022, the number of deaths due to road accidents in India among victims between 25 to 35 years amounted to nearly 42.6 thousand, the most compared to other age groups. That year, there were over 169 thousand accidental fatalities across the south Asian country. Over-speeding was the leading contributor of accidents. Combined, state and national highways recorded around 258 thousand road accidents in 2022. This number had dropped significantly in 2016, before increasing again in recent years.

Accident demographics

The Indian subcontinent ranked first in terms of road accident deaths according to the World Road Statistics which comprised of 199 countries. A majority of victims were two-wheeler commuters. Additionally, pedestrians made up a high share of victims as well, reflecting the lack of infrastructure, be it improper footpaths and the lack of foot-over bridges or negligence of traffic rules. About 70 percent of the road accidents in India accounted for about six percent of the global road traffic accidents.

Accident prevention

Poor enforcement of fines, in addition to mild punishments and corruption encourages drivers, especially among young Indians, to engage in rash driving. Accident awareness programs were initiated by the government among the motorists, along with the National Road Safety Policy to encourage safe transport, strict enforcement of safety laws and fines and establishment of road safety database.

The data shows the year-wise statistics for incidence of accidental deaths in different cities of India by natural or unnatural causes between 2009 and 2015.

Note: 1. Vasai Virar, Tiruchirappalli, Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram, Ranchi, Srinagar, Raipur, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kota, Kollam, Kannur, Jodhpur, Gwalior, Ghaziabad, Durg Bhilainagar, Aurangabad and Chandigarh (City) newly emerged Mega Cities as per Population Census 2011. 2. Poisoning includes the incidence due to food poisoning/accidental intake of insects, spurious/poisoning liquor, leakage of poisoning gases etc., snake bite/animal bite and others. 3. Traffic accidents includes Road accidents, Rail road accidents and other railway accidents. 4. Collapse of structure includes House, Building, Dam, Bridge others. 5. Sudden deaths include i) Heart Attacks ii) Epileptic fits/giddiness iii) Abortion/Childbirth iv) Influence of alcohol. 6. Fire includes i) Fireworks/crackers ii) Short-Circuit iii) Cooking Gas Cylinder/Stove burst iv) other fire accidents.

“India tops the world with 11% of global death in road accidents It has 1 per cent of the world's vehicles but accounts for 11 per cent of all road crash deaths, witnessing 53 road crashes every hour; killing 1 person every 4 minutes” – World Bank Report -The Economic Times, Feb 14, 2021

This is indeed an alarming report. With the rapid increase in the number of automobiles and also the heavily congested roads, ensuring road safety has utmost importance for the people in the country. Fatalities and injuries resulting from road traffic accidents can create a heavy burden on the economy and can strain the health, insurance and legal systems of the country.

India has recorded a significant drop in road crashes and deaths in in 2020 when compared to 2019. This is partly due to COVID-19 pandemic-prompted lockdowns and people voluntarily not venturing out to prevent transmission. Hence to get a better view, a detailed analysis was carried out to understand some of the major reasons for the high accident cases in India using the data from 2017-2019. The source of this data is from the official website of Government of India (https://data.gov.in/ )

In 2022, there were around 74 thousand female accidental deaths in India, while the number was more than 355 thousand for males. The number of accidental deaths had increased compared to the previous year.

In 2022, the number of fatalities due to road accidents in Delhi, India, amounted to 1,461. This was an increase from 1,239 fatalities in the previous year. In the same year, the pedestrian fatalities constituted a share more than 44 percent of the total.

The number of road accidents across India amounted to around 461 thousand in 2022. Each year, about three to five percent of the GDP of the country was invested in road accidents. About 70 percent of accidents involved young Indians. The country has about one percent of the global vehicle population but it accounted for six percent of the world's road traffic accidents.

India Road Accidents: Auto Rickshaws: Number of Accidents data was reported at 5,887.000 Unit in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 6,095.000 Unit for 2016. India Road Accidents: Auto Rickshaws: Number of Accidents data is updated yearly, averaging 32,332.500 Unit from Dec 2008 (Median) to 2017, with 10 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 36,365.000 Unit in 2008 and a record low of 5,430.000 Unit in 2015. India Road Accidents: Auto Rickshaws: Number of Accidents data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Automobile Sector – Table IN.RAF001: Road Accidents.

The number of deaths from road traffic accidents across the eastern city of Kolkata in India was 185 in 2022. Of this number, the share of pedestrian deaths stood at less than half. Traffic management has emerged as a challenging aspect across metropolitan cities in India. Huge traffic volumes in limited road space combined with pedestrian congestion and sub-standard infrastructure have made managing traffic a daunting task.

Traffic accidents caused the most number of deaths across India in 2022, at over 194 thousand and most of the traffic accidents occurred at roads where the traffic was uncontrolled. The maximum number of accidental deaths across the south Asian country were reported in the city of Mumbai.

The number of road accidents across the Indian state of West Bengal in 2022 was over 13 thousand. Traffic discrepancies have been a major source of death, injury and damage to property every year. In 2022, over-speeding of vehicles was the main reason for road accident casualties. The south Asian country ranked first out of 200 reported in World Road Statistics that year for the number of road accident deaths.

Road Accidents: Kerala: Buses: Number of Persons Killed data was reported at 0.000 Person in 2022. This stayed constant from the previous number of 0.000 Person for 2021. Road Accidents: Kerala: Buses: Number of Persons Killed data is updated yearly, averaging 3.000 Person from Dec 2008 (Median) to 2022, with 15 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 25.000 Person in 2008 and a record low of 0.000 Person in 2022. Road Accidents: Kerala: Buses: Number of Persons Killed data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Automobile Sector – Table IN.RAG018: Road Accidents: Kerala.

In 2022, around 15 thousand people lost their lives in road accidents across the Indian state of Maharashtra. Traffic discrepancies have been a major source of death, injury and damage to property every year. In 2022, over-speeding of vehicles was the main reason for road accident casualties. The south Asian country ranked first out of 200 reported in World Road Statistics that year for the number of road accident deaths.

DESCRIPTION This table contains data on the percent of residents aged 16 years and older mode of transportation to work for ...

SUMMARY This table contains data on the percent of residents aged 16 years and older mode of transportation to work for California, its regions, counties, cities/towns, and census tracts. Data is from the U.S. Census Bureau, Decennial Census and American Community Survey. The table is part of a series of indicators in the Healthy Communities Data and Indicators Project of the Office of Health Equity. Commute trips to work represent 19% of travel miles in the United States. The predominant mode – the automobile - offers extraordinary personal mobility and independence, but it is also associated with health hazards, such as air pollution, motor vehicle crashes, pedestrian injuries and fatalities, and sedentary lifestyles. Automobile commuting has been linked to stress-related health problems. Active modes of transport – bicycling and walking alone and in combination with public transit – offer opportunities for physical activity, which is associated with lowering rates of heart disease and stroke, diabetes, colon and breast cancer, dementia and depression. Risk of injury and death in collisions are higher in urban areas with more concentrated vehicle and pedestrian activity. Bus and rail passengers have a lower risk of injury in collisions than motorcyclists, pedestrians, and bicyclists. Minority communities bear a disproportionate share of pedestrian-car fatalities; Native American male pedestrians experience four times the death rate Whites or Asian pedestrians, and African-Americans and Latinos experience twice the rate as Whites or Asians. More information about the data table and a data dictionary can be found in the About/Attachments section.

ind_id - Indicator ID ind_definition - Definition of indicator in plain language reportyear - Year that the indicator was reported race_eth_code - numeric code for a race/ethnicity group race_eth_name - Name of race/ethnic group geotype - Type of geographic unit geotypevalue - Value of geographic unit geoname - Name of a geographic unit county_name - Name of county that geotype is in county_fips - FIPS code of the county that geotype is in region_name - MPO-based region name; see MPO_County list tab region_code - MPO-based region code; see MPO_County list tab mode - Mode of transportation short name mode_name - Mode of transportation long name pop_total - denominator pop_mode - numerator percent - Percent of Residents Mode of Transportation to Work,
Population Aged 16 Years and Older LL_95CI_percent - The lower limit of 95% confidence interval UL_95CI_percent - The lower limit of 95% confidence interval percent_se - Standard error of the percent mode of transportation percent_rse - Relative standard error (se/value) expressed as a percent CA_decile - California decile CA_RR - Rate ratio to California rate version - Date/time stamp of a version of data

In 2022, over seven thousand people lost their lives in road accidents across the Indian state of Gujarat. Traffic discrepancies have been a major source of death, injury and damage to property every year. In 2022, over-speeding of vehicles was the main reason for road accident casualties. The south Asian country ranked first out of 200 reported in World Road Statistics that year for the number of road accident deaths.

The number of road accidents across the Indian state of Telangana in 2022 was over 21 thousand. Traffic discrepancies have been a major source of death, injury and damage to property every year. In 2022, over-speeding of vehicles was the main reason for road accident casualties. The south Asian country ranked first out of 200 reported in World Road Statistics that year for the number of road accident deaths.

In 2022, over four thousand people lost their lives in road accidents across the Indian state of Kerala. Traffic discrepancies have been a major source of death, injury and damage to property every year. In 2022, over-speeding of vehicles was the main reason for road accident casualties. The south Asian country ranked first out of 200 reported in World Road Statistics that year for the number of road accident deaths.

The number of road accidents across the Indian state of Tripura in 2022 was 575. Traffic discrepancies have been a major source of death, injury and damage to property every year. In 2022, over-speeding of vehicles was the main reason for road accident casualties. The south Asian country ranked first out of 200 reported in World Road Statistics that year for the number of road accident deaths.

The number of road accidents across the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in 2022 was over 64 thousand. Traffic discrepancies have been a major source of death, injury and damage to property every year. In 2022, over-speeding of vehicles was the main reason for road accident casualties. The south Asian country ranked first out of 200 reported in World Road Statistics that year for the number of road accident deaths.

In 2022, the Indian state with the highest number of road accidents was Tamil Nadu, with over 64 thousand cases reported, followed by Madhya Pradesh, with over 54 thousand reported road accidents. However, Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of fatal accidents during the same period.