Dear MEL Topic Readers,
A death every three minutes: Why India's roads are among the world's deadliest
There are around 290 million registered vehicles on the roads, and a little over 40,000 people die from motor vehicle crashes in the USA. In India, over 350 million registered vehicles are on the roads, and over 172,000 people died from traffic accidents in 2023, approximately 474 deaths each day. Among the dead, 54,000 weren’t wearing helmets, and 16,000 were not wearing seatbelts. Also, many people died from overloading, driving without a valid license, or driving on the wrong side. While a lack of basic safety precautions is the predominant cause of road accidents, the dangerous road environment is also to blame. In India, there are cars, buses, and motorcycles speeding on the road, while slower vehicles like bicycles, rickshaws, hand or animal-drawn carts, and pedestrians are crawling on the same congested roads. Also, improper design and installation of safety features like metal barriers and tall medians contribute to more traffic accidents on India’s roads. As more vehicles, whether electric or two-wheelers, are rapidly being added to the roads each day, India is in need of a safety upgrade in order not to increase traffic accidents accordingly.
Read the article and think about how safe it is to drive, ride, or walk in India.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g49pgx6d0o
No comments:
Post a Comment