Highway mayhem

Highway mayhem

Road safety can be enhanced if designs account for the inevitability of human error.

A recent study by agencies that included the World Bank and National Highways Authority of India found that about 30% of the Mumbai-Delhi stretch and 50% of the Mumbai-Chennai stretch of the Golden Quadrilateral are unsafe for vehicles. The study points out that this makes it worse for two-wheelers or pedestrians as there are hardly any facilities available. National Highways are India’s lifeline. They make up a mere 2% of the road network but carry 40% of the traffic. Unfortunately, they also account for 35% of fatalities. High accident death rates are not only human tragedies but also raise questions about the quality of infrastructure being built. But they are largely avoidable if authorities change their approach to safety.

Police data show that the primary cause of accidents is the driver. They account for 84% of accidents and 80% of deaths on all roads. Well intentioned measures like the National Road Safety Policy or a District Road Safety Committee under the leadership of the relevant Lok Sabha MP seem to have had little impact. If the driver is the main cause of accidents, the solution lies in dealing with this fact. In this context, Sweden may provide an answer to India’s accident problems.

Two decades ago, Sweden overturned the traditional view of safety by accepting that human errors are inevitable. Road safety borrowed a concept from nuclear plants which are designed on the assumption that if human errors are inevitable then risk can be minimised only by incorporating that into safety design. India’s road safety design necessarily needs to be tailored to local conditions and usage patterns. Government has embarked on a massive road building drive under the “Bharatmala” umbrella. This provides an opportunity to rethink the traditional approach and find ways to improve road safety.