The forgotten commuters: Children on Indian roads

Why It’s Time to Mainstream Child-Centric Street Design, Stronger Laws, and Smarter Enforcement

Globally, road traffic injuries remain the leading cause of death for children and adolescents aged 5 - 19, with a staggering 97% of these fatalities occurring in low and middle income countries. What makes this even more tragic is that these deaths are largely preventable. There are proven, low-cost interventions that offer wide-ranging benefits, not just for safety, but also for public health and the environment. Yet, these solutions are often overlooked, a key reason being that our road infrastructure is primarily designed for adults in motorized vehicles, failing to account for the unique needs of children who navigate roads as pedestrians, cyclists, and passengers.

Child safety on roads is crucial, especially in recent times as children are among the most vulnerable road users with limited awareness of traffic dangers across the world. With the growing number of vehicles, high-speed traffic, and urbanization, children face increased risks of accidents and injuries. In India, according to the Road Accidents Report by MoRTH, the number of minors (below 18 years) killed in 2022 was 9,528 (6% of all road fatalities). This is almost 23% higher compared to 7,764 in 2021. 

Although children are among the most at-risk groups on our roads, they are routinely overlooked in how streets are designed and how traffic rules are enforced. India's regulatory and planning systems continue to prioritize the smooth flow of motorized traffic over the safety and accessibility needs of children and other vulnerable road users. This focus on vehicles rather than people results in environments that are unsafe and unwelcoming for young pedestrians and cyclists. This glaring oversight has critical implications, not just for children’s safety, but for how inclusive and equitable our cities truly are.

Why Focus on Children? 

Children are among the most vulnerable road users not because of their actions, but because of how our streets are designed. Their limited cognitive and physical ability to accurately judge speed, distance, and traffic gaps makes them especially prone to accidents. Despite this, many children undertake hazardous journeys every day, navigating unsafe crossings, speeding vehicles, poorly lit areas, and footpaths that are either too narrow, obstructed or entirely missing. These risks are magnified during school commutes, where children often walk or cycle on roads not designed for their safety. Protecting them isn't just about safety; it's about equity and ensuring that our cities recognize the needs of their youngest citizens. Roads must be planned, built, and road rules enforced with children in mind, prioritizing their safety at every stage.

Ensuring child safety not only prevents fatalities and serious injuries but also fosters a safer environment for them to walk, cycle, and commute. Road safety measures for children help promote responsible driving behavior, reduce accidents, and create a more child-friendly infrastructure, contributing to the overall well-being of communities.

What the law covers and where it falls short 

Existing legal framework for protecting children on roads 

India has made notable progress in enhancing road safety for children through a series of legal instruments and regulatory frameworks. A significant legislative milestone is the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019, which introduces dedicated provisions for child safety. The Act mandates the use of helmets for children above four years riding on two-wheelers. Additionally, it emphasizes seatbelt compliance for all vehicle occupants, laying the foundation for the adoption of child restraint systems (CRS) following which CRS were legally mandated in India for children below 14 years of age. 

A notification from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) dated 15th February 2022, amended Rule 138 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules (CMVR), 1989, to prescribe safety measures for children below four years of age who are riding or being carried on a motorcycle. Subsequently, the Central Motor Vehicles (Second Amendment) Rules, 2022 (CMVR 2022), specifically require that children between 9 months and 4 years wear a safety harness and either a crash helmet or a bicycle helmet conforming to European safety standards, until specifications are formally prescribed by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). It also restricts the speed of two-wheelers carrying such young passengers to 40 kmph. 

Additionally, school transport is governed by guidelines derived from the Supreme Court’s 2001 ruling and advisories by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH). These include:

• Mandatory yellow paint and “School Bus” signage.
• School buses to be fitted with FDAS (Fire Detection and Alarm System) 
• Employment of trained drivers and attendants.
• Use of speed governors (40 km/h max) and service doors.
• Directions on seating capacity, seat design, storage, emergency exits and more. 
• Encouragement for safety features like GPS tracking and CCTV.

The Indian Roads Congress (IRC) provides supplementary technical guidance relevant to child road safety, including IRC:35-2015 for Road Markings (including school zones), IRC:103-2012 for Pedestrian Facilities (includes school zone improvements) and IRC:99-2018 for Traffic Calming Measures in Urban and Rural Areas among others. IRC is intended to provide best practices and standards for road engineering and an amendment to the Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR) in 2020, has made it mandatory that road design, and construction be according to IRC standards or as per guidelines laid down by the government. However, a 2022 judgement of the Madras High Court states that they are not mandatory unless they are incorporated into specific rules or regulations by the relevant state or government.

What’s missing 

Despite the existence of several legal and regulatory provisions, there are critical gaps in implementation, enforcement, and scope that limit their effectiveness, a few of which are listed below. 

• Child Restraint Systems (CRS), while legally mandated, are not yet widely adopted in India, with studies indicating low usage and awareness.  
• Enforcement of safety laws, especially seatbelt and helmet usage for children, is sporadic and often limited to urban areas. 
• School zones are inadequately protected, with missing or poor signage, lack of speed calming measures, and weak deterrence for reckless driving.
• No mandatory design codes focused on children’s safety near schools, parks, or tuition zones. 
• Urban design continues to prioritize motorized traffic, with no legal obligation to integrate child safety considerations in road and street planning.
• No data-driven approach to mapping high-risk child zones.

Moreover, the absence of systematic road safety audits, especially around schools and child-dense neighborhoods, leaves safety lapses unaddressed. Finally, there is a lack of participatory planning mechanisms that involve children, parents, or educators in shaping road safety interventions, thus overlooking the lived realities of young road users.

Design Failures 

India’s road infrastructure often reflects a prioritization of vehicular mobility over the safety and accessibility of vulnerable road users, particularly children. This car-centric approach has resulted in several design failures that significantly compromise the safety of children navigating urban and semi-urban environments.

Lack of Safe, Continuous Sidewalks
Sidewalks, where available, are often narrow, broken, encroached upon by vendors or parked vehicles, and not continuous. In many Indian cities such as Chennai and Bengaluru, children walking to school are forced onto carriageways, increasing the risk of collisions with fast-moving vehicles. Several stretches near schools lack any pedestrian pathway, making it unsafe for children to walk unaccompanied. Schools in rural areas also contend with similar, if not worse, challenges, where sidewalks are either extremely narrow, poorly maintained, or entirely nonexistent. In many such regions, children are left with no option but to walk along the edge of busy roads or unpaved shoulders, exposing them to significant risk from vehicular traffic.

Mid-block Crossings Without Signals or Refuge Islands
In areas with high pedestrian traffic, especially around schools, parks, or residential neighborhoods, crossings are often placed mid-block without proper pedestrian signals or refuge islands. This exposes children to fast-moving traffic from both directions, with no protected space to pause midway.
 

Non-existent to Limited Speed Calming Near Schools
Despite Indian Roads Congress (IRC) guidelines recommending traffic calming near school zones, many roads around schools lack basic infrastructure like speed breakers, raised pedestrian crossings, road markings or signage. In Chennai, for instance, several private schools on arterial roads like Mount Road or ECR are located on high-speed stretches with little to no traffic calming, forcing children to rely on unsafe crossings or hurried road entry and exit.

Poor Lighting and Visibility at Child Height
Street lighting in many areas is either inadequate or poorly maintained. Even when lighting is available, it is often positioned to benefit drivers rather than illuminate sidewalks or pedestrian zones. This lack of visibility, especially at a child's height, increases the risk of not being seen by drivers, especially during early school hours or in the evenings. 

Child Centric Street Design/ Spaces Across the Globe

Kids / Children First Program - Bogotá, Colombia 

The Kids/Children First program in Bogotá is a child-centered urban mobility initiative that prioritizes the safety, independence, and well-being of children in city planning. Launched by the city’s administration, the program focuses on redesigning public spaces, especially around schools and in low-income neighborhoods, to be safer, more inclusive, and accessible for children. 

To reduce the risks children face, the city created five projects: pedestrian and cycle caravans (Centipede and Al Colegio en Bici), an educational park (MobilePark), two priority bus lanes, a regular school transportation check-up, and school zones. This has had a significant impact since 2018 as mentioned below. 

• more than 1,000 students have been enrolled in Centipede, the walk to school program. 
• more than 1.5 million bicycle trips to school have been made in four years as part of Al Colegio en Bici. 
• over 1,500 students have learned kind and safe street coexistence from MobilePark 
• over 95,000 students taking school buses use priority lanes. 
• over 2,900 school zones have been created over four years.

A key principle was treating children as active city users rather than passive dependents, aiming to give them greater autonomy and protection in their daily commutes. This initiative aligns with Bogotá’s broader vision of creating a more equitable and human-centered urban environment. 

Kids First Program in Bogota, with children cycling to school as part of their cycle to school program (above) and the educational park for children to learn about road safety (below). Source: Urban Sustainability Exchange. 

South Korea’s School Zone Improvement Project

South Korea reduced childhood traffic fatalities by 95% between 1988 and 2012 through a comprehensive approach combining regulations, education, and urban design. A key initiative, the School Zone Improvement Project, aimed to create safe routes between homes and schools by redesigning streets around educational facilities. Measures included strict speed limits (30 km/h), colorful road markings, reducing speed limits using speed bumps, installing fences and designated pedestrian pathways, placing traffic signals and signage near school entrances, and banning parking near schools. These design and policy changes resulted in a 32% annual reduction in child traffic accidents and contributed significantly to the country's dramatic decline in child road deaths, showcasing the power of sustained, child-centered urban planning and strong governance.

Play Streets - United Kingdom

Play streets are a fast-growing concept in the UK, where neighborhood-organized road closures create safe spaces for children to play outdoors. Originating from a single initiative in South Bristol in 2009, the movement has now expanded to over 1,500 street communities nationwide. Led by the organization Playing Out, this parent-driven effort empowers communities to reclaim public space for children, offering resources like manuals, templates, toolkits, and advocacy support to help residents set up their own sessions and influence local policy.

Research by Bristol University found these sessions significantly boosted children’s outdoor playtime, further fueling the movement’s popularity. Overall, the play streets movement in the UK demonstrates how small, community-led actions can drive meaningful change, fostering healthier, more connected neighborhoods and advocating for fairer access to safe play for all children. There are also examples from across the globe supporting play streets such as in Hanoi-Vietnam (Saturday Night Mobile Playground) and Los Angeles-USA (Box of Play) among others.

Temporary closure of streets in the UK for children to play outdoors

Recommendations 

Prioritizing children and designing streets for them ultimately means that our roads are safer, more comfortable, beautiful, and better serve everyone using them from the elderly to the differently-abled. The challenges faced by children and many others on urban streets are ideally addressed through a holistic combination of design and policy. Below are a few important suggestions to explore. 

Policy & Regulations

• Amend IRC Codes to include child-centric street design elements.
• Mandate child zones with 20–30 km/h speed caps, raised crossings, and school safety signage across cities, States and the country. 

Infrastructure & Design

• Build continuous, obstruction-free sidewalks with tactile paving.
• Install raised pedestrian crossings and table-top entries in school zones.
• Pilot the use of child-height signals, signage, and street furniture in school zones. 
• Implement protected pick-up/drop-off zones near schools.
• Pilot open, play and/or school streets.  

Enforcement & Monitoring

• Enforce helmet and seatbelt laws for children across states.
• Conduct regular road safety audits focused on school areas.
• Use ANPR cameras and sensors to monitor school zones and traffic violations.
• Involve local traffic police, parents and children in child-friendly urban mobility planning.

Empower Children and Communities

• Launch school-based road safety clubs and student audits.
• Encourage children to map danger zones on their daily routes.
• Run awareness campaigns for parents, drivers, and schools on safe commuting practices.

Conclusion 

Despite existing laws, India’s roads remain hostile to children and vulnerable users. A future-ready road system must be child-first, not car-first. This requires a legally binding framework, infrastructure overhaul, and real-time enforcement, not just intent. It's time to treat child road safety as a public health, equity, and design priority, and not as an afterthought.