NDTV’s 7 Point Agenda on Road Safety Presented to the Government
In an effort to make India’s roads safer, Diageo-NDTV Road to Safety campaign presents a 7 point agenda to the government.
Indian roads are the most dangerous in the world. Sadly, a majority of innocent lives are lost due to irresponsible behaviour behind the wheel, including drunken or under-age driving. In an effort to make India’s roads safer, Diageo-NDTV Road to Safety campaign presents a 7 point agenda to the government on the following aspects of road safety:
- Replace the existing Motor Vehicles Act with a strong national road safety law and ensure its implementation.
- Improve investigation of road accidents by using latest technology and establish a unified national database.
- Ensure strict enforcement against drunken-driving and provision of alcometers in every Police station in India.
- Enact a Good Samaritan Law to provide protection, from legal hassles, to bystanders and passers-by who assist injured victims.
- Ensure safety of Vulnerable Road Users: Pedestrians, Cyclists and Two Wheelers
- Support the Prime Minister towards the development of the new 100 Smart Cities with Safe Road infrastructure design.
- Training of police to enable road crash investigation via scientific methods to identify the factual causes and consequences of road crashes.
This aspect of our lives will play a key role in improving our standards of Living in our cities and towns. Extremely important initiative. The right road etiqutte should be imnparted in schools immediately, so that the next gen do not have to go through a re-learning process.
This is very nice initiative, I want to add that 1)Design of road/ highways should also be safe to travel, minimum curves & consistency in width of road, 2)Proper signage at repeated accidental spots with action plan of improvement from road authorities/ govt. needed, 3) Trained /support staff for medical assistance at handling accident victims(Training certificate course to youths/ group of people living near highways can be given).
Useless points that are not going to help. 6 of 7 points need to be a safe road design. Where are the dividers, removal of sharp turns, fencing and marking of chasms and valleys, leaving shoulder width for errors, removal of parkings and road side shaks along narrow roads, highway looping out of cities etc. the 7th point can be road safety education and rule implementation. I think
The most imp. aspect is PREVENTION of road crashes, which has been missed. Road Safety Assessment; Road Safety Audit, Road Safety Inspection; Safer vehicles (4 to 5 Star Crash Ratings), Periodic Vehicle inspections, Training of drivers, Road Safety Awareness, Capacity building in all concerned departments and Coordination, Cooperation and Collaboration; Integrated road safety management and information System; Creating a SAFE SYSTEM and Safer Travel environment for All road users for All traffic, road and Traffic conditions are to be strongly advocated, funded and implemented. Int. RS Specialist.
Excellent Initiative and very good points. The implementation needs to be successful. I, as an individual pledge that I shall shall follow the rules laid down for Road Safety By the Government of India and/ or the State Governments
I also hope that there is a Uniform rule accross the country for Accident Management and Clarity on Insurance Claim procedures
There must be central law and strict its implementation banning all sorts of stray animal wandering freely. Stray and roaming cattle, pigs and dogs are the undoing of all the sane developments. A little willpower on the part of enforcement agency with total transaparency in implementation will generate the required voluntary and spontaneous support of all sections of the public. In no other part of the world stray animals have a field day as in India. By removing stray animals, we will achieve multiple benefits – smooth traffic, greenery, less pollution, less dirt, and, last but most important, supportive ambience for self-discipline in public life. Only one measure targetted to remove all sorts of stray animals will turn India around by endowing civic life with real virtues of citizenship.
You have missed the most important point, enforce the traffic rules vigorously without any fear or favour. Strict punishment for repeated violators even to the extent that they are never permitted driving license or any government benefits in future. This should be applicable to pedestrians as well. Insurance companies should also negate any claims made on behalf of the offenders
some law should be enforced on honking
We all know that statistics say that India records the highest number of accident deaths in world. Other that this, we should also seriously consider the trauma and torture that we undergo everyday in the streets due the dangerous driving that we encounter. Apart from deaths and permanent disabilities that we see, the trauma is no less caused due to the innumerable just misses that we encounter every second… People overtaking from the left and taking turns from the wrong lanes are the main reasons for accidents. I strongly feel that the law enforcement agencies seriously need to be sensitized… Awareness should begin from the lower ring traffic policemen in the streets… In My city Bengaluru, BTP has set a TMC with huge display screens to monitor traffic movement. Any dignitary who visit Bangalore is taken there to let them know the good work done by them. My question to them is, due to this Traffic management centre, what are the results in the streets? People are still not scared of cops and do not even think twice before violating traffic rules… Road rage continues, people are getting more and more daring…
Congratulations for your campaign. Hope the awareness spreads and there is a change. You have covered almost all the aspects but I thought I would give a few suggestions which could be implemented :
Take up continuous and sustained education of all classes of road users, especially drivers who are primarily responsible for causing accidents. By this I mean the entire existing lot of drivers who have already been issued driving licences without imparting sufficient road usage and road safety training. If after such training, even if 10% of the people change, it would make a huge difference.
Overspeeding is one of the major causes of accidents. Almost every driver, be it in the city or in the highway tends to drive at speeds more than approriate putting himself and others to risk of injury and death. People have to be sensitises on the hazards associated with overspeeding. This is far more relevant today than it was some years back. Because today we have highly powerful cars and open highways without the people being aware of how to use these or rather not knowing the dangers involved in using these without training. Thank you.
hi,
do you think only investigations are more important than fixing the cause of the accidents. Infrastructure is more viable requirement before imposing the strict rules. 2 lanes(one side) road converted into one lane because of illegal parking on the left side. Now where should person park his car ? Do we have designated parking areas in market places ? If we have designated parking areas, 10& of people do not want to park because traffic police is not strict. They will come once in a year impose some fine.
For me please provide good infra. I stayed in Dubai for 5 years. Please go and see there.
Thanks
Vishal
81237-33402
Please link all accidents to the insurance premium. The driver who is determined by the “police or appropriate authority” to be “at fault” will pay from his/her insurer to the victim’s insurer for repairs and damages. This will allow the victim to keep his premium unaffected but the careless driver or the driver-at-fault will lose his/her no-claim-bonus. Mostly drivers rear-ending / hitting from behind or changing abrupt directions or burnt head-lamps,faulty tires,wrong-side driving, etc should be regarded as “at-fault”
1. Strict enforcement of parking vehicles on hoghways.
2. strict guidelines for YATRI/Pilgrims while walking on road.
3. Identfy each point-turnings where during different time of day/night – difficulty for both drivers sight/vision
4. enforcement of lights/indicators on back of vehicls-tractors/cycles/goods vehicle any -clear visibility of vehicles from back
5At all turn – dividers, slowing of vehicles(Bumps) , extrawidening of roads and indicators inposition well ahead
5. Rail crossing- It is not required to put signal /crossing at all in India. It is human thing to cross the signal with slowinmg/watching/ etc. If drives can not note/hear /ignore the trains on both side just for competition or hurry this will going to happen
6 . I have observed people crossing seeing on other side , thing driver will stop . Change of human habbits/nature/education. That is it happen in all India just for our habbits/nature
7. Other thing LAWS and enforcement strictly
NDTV, you forgot most important one i.e construction and maintenance of good roads. Strict Laws can made in over night but with poor road infrastructure it can’t. First govt. should provide the citizens roads in good condition and clear direction signs.
This is very encouraging step towards Road sfety measures,Majority of accidents have been occuring due to non reinforcemrnt of Administration. Corruption by Police is main cause of accidents. Mobile safety checks by traffic police and give penalty tickets at spot.
One of the things that will help improve road safety is a strict driving test that is implemented well by the RTOs. This will ensure the training (theory – rules & regulations – and practice) gets better gradually, and all drivers realise the importance of “driving with road sense”, rather than ability to “just drive the damn vehicle”.
Nowhere in India is a “proper” driving test conducted. Perhaps worth making the driving licence costlier and using the revenue generated to provide resources (people & information/awareness adverts) for making the process of getting a driving licence much stricter, but friendlier
1 more point:
Ensuring road rules are followed by pedestrians.
I think 7 steps will not sufficient to control the traffic rules and protect people from accidents as there is dire need for governments in every state of the country to implement strict laws others it couldn’t be stop due to negative approach of law makers who are less bothered about such incidents occurred in every nook and corner of the nation. There will be no awareness of traffic related issues which we will only seen during the traffic week every year across the nation by displaying placards , hoardings etc.
The following points are to be considered:
1. Ban on use of ‘High Beam lights within city limits
2. To reduce horn honking
3. To bring lane discipline particularly two wheelers
4. Strict enforcement of laws for punishing overspeeding
Trucks and other heavy vehicles are the cause of many accidents; should regulate these vehicular movements especially on the national highways where other smaller vehicles like the passenger cars ply.
We can always take a pledge, but sensitisation is difficult. The Supreme Court has ordered no harassment to those who have helped accident victims. A uneducated woman near Nalanda Medical College has taken vow that she will never help any victim as the local Police inspector calls her every day for hours together.
One of the building blocks of road safety that we lack is; basic road/driving etiquette. This is something that can only be achieved through a stringent system which requires Basic driver ed. from every potential driver before he/she is let to drive on our roads. If one doesn’t know what wrong he is doing, he is going to keep doing it no matter how many laws you impose.
Hi
I would like to suggest the below ..
Anybody can get the driving license today with influence and not giving driving /riding test . The driving schools/agents have tie up with RTO officals to manage and get the license for the un diserved citizans .
My recommendation is increase the eligibility criteria to be 12th pass . And the learning driving and recommending driving license should be given to colleges . Driving should be part assessment in students 12th std curriculum . This will influence the discipline in driving , following the rules etc. What we learn in school is what we follow throughout our life . I believe this can bring about significant change in the way our young generation drives on the roads. Reckless and carefree attitude could be controlled to great extent .
Regards
Sudish
Pedestrians doesn’t have dedicated pedestrian walk.
– Pedestrians cross the roads wherever they think.
– Population is high.
– Vehicle going before, doesn’t give you a way.
– Vehicle going before, is very slow.
– Driver is having habit of horn for no reason.
– No automated pedestrian crossing signal.
– There are no lane markings.
– There are no lane following system.
– There is no attitude to give way to pedestrians by stopping a while.
– If we don’t horn, accident can happen?
– Because the car comes with a horn.
– Because different sound horn are available?
– Pedestrian signals don’t have vehicle population tracking and accordingly no automate. pedestrian crossing signal.
– Shortage of lanes in highways.
– Turning, blind curve roads.
To add to this, we also need to have a mechanism to ensure quality of the roads. Potholes on the road are the next big cause for road accidents.
Well – All are very good points. However, we need to identify what are the specific flaws in existing laws / procedures / testing methodologies and come up with concrete suggestions.
We should take reference of best practices world wide & should implement the same.
Just to give one example: For driving capability testing, we don’t have any facilities. How RTO officials will check without facilities? I was told one of my friend residing in UK about such testing facilities. Why can’t we be the best in world.
that’s good suggestion but stickily rule about wrong side driving & over loading of all vehicles
Hope changes to be started from very basic
– First Motor Vehicle Act to be amended
– Invest in Technology to issue Driving License to persons with proper scrutiny along with road safety and rules to be know to the person applying for it.
– Implement same for those who are applying for renewal of driving license.
– Advertise on media and all major roads, about lanes and rules to follow, so that every one try to follow that and make sure it is implemented using technology.
Respect for public space &people is missing
Inculcate it from school
Media can help by showing people’s attitude in other countries
Low cc vehicle, cutting speed at manufacturer, tight insurance , punishing the boss who forces fast driving, punishing irresponsible police and licensing authorities are top solutions.