“Two wheelers and cars speed upto 75 kmph in major arterial stretches of Chennai city” says a study by CAG that highlights the concerns of speed management in the city through evidence based cases. The report also outlines priority areas to reduce speeding threats. Read to know more!
The consequences and the dangers of speeding are far ranging and well known. From losing control of a vehicle to the potential dangers of increased stopping distances and higher crash severity, speeding is a huge menace for the mixed road traffic scenario typical of India. As per the State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB) 2020, 98.57% of crashes in Tamil Nadu were the result of dangerous driver behaviour. The main reasons included speeding and aggressive driving.
From being a signatory to the Brasilia Declaration in 2015 to reaffirming its commitment to reducing road crash induced injuries and fatalities by 50 percent under the United Nations’ Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, India has been taking a raft of initiatives to improve road safety. Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister for Transport and Highways in a recent press conference on making vehicles safer highlighted that India has been consistently working on the 4 Es of road safety viz. Education, Enforcement, Engineering and Emergency Care.
Road Safety is an important public health concern with serious social and economic consequences. India continues to account for the highest road crashes at the global level with the World Bank’s 2019 report suggesting 53 crashes happening on an hourly basis with one fatality every four minutes. India accounts for 13 per cent of the total road traffic fatalities in the world according to MoRTH.
Reduction of road crashes and fatalities at the state and district levels has been prioritised and led by a series of steady efforts channelized through institutional changes, data-driven approaches and improved law enforcement in Tamil Nadu since 2017. Therefore, it's crucial to understand the road safety scenario, its progress, success factors and the challenges in implementation at the decentralised district levels to sustain road safety achievements. CAG, in collaboration with Mr.