The government has revised its target for reducing road accidents and related fatalities, now aiming to halve the numbers by 2030 instead of the earlier goal set for 2024. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari expressed dissatisfaction with the current results despite prior efforts. In September 2022, Gadkari urged state transport ministers to collaborate on achieving a 50% reduction in road accidents and deaths by 2024.
Gadkari, while releasing the ‘Road Safety Good Practices in India’ report by SaveLIFE Foundation, announced the new target, stating, “We have set the latest target to reduce the number of road accidents and the resulting deaths in the country by half by 2030.” According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) report, road accidents in India increased by 12% in 2022, totaling over 4.6 lakh, resulting in 19 deaths per hour.
The report revealed that 53 road accidents occur every hour, with 4,61,312 accidents reported in 2022, claiming 1,68,491 lives and causing injuries to 4,43,366 people. This marked an 11.9% increase in accidents, 9.4% in fatalities, and 15.3% in injuries compared to the previous year.
SaveLIFE Foundation’s report emphasized the potential to save 40,000 lives annually by implementing successful corridor-based road safety practices. It highlighted examples like the National Highway 48 Zero Fatality Corridor project, which saw a 61% decrease in fatalities between 2018 and 2021. The Sabarimala Safe Zone also recorded zero road crash deaths from 2019 to 2021, serving as a model for pilgrimage sites nationwide.
The report classified interventions as corridor-based, network-based, and state-based, covering nine corridor-based, two city/network-based, and two state-based interventions across ten states. Gadkari emphasized that by focusing on successful interventions specific to certain corridors or localities, the report provides valuable insights into effective strategies that can be adapted elsewhere.