Delhi Traffic Unit launches Delhi Road Crash Report, 2021
Sep 16, 2022
New Delhi [India], September 16 : Sanjay Arora, Commissioner of Police, Delhi launched the Delhi Road Crash Report, 2021 prepared by Delhi Traffic Unit.
"This book contains the analysis of the accidents that occurred during the year 2021 along with the causes, patterns, and suggestions in road design, regulation, and prosecution", said Sanjay Arora.
Shifting from the traditional way, this is the first time that the Delhi Traffic Police has replaced the word 'Accident' with 'Crash' in this annual report, formerly titled 'Road Accidents in Delhi'.
The change is on the basis that the "Crashes" are events that can be prevented, and are open to rational analysis and remedial action while 'Accidents' suggest that they are inevitable.
This change empowers the government to be more proactive in saving lives on the road through evidence-based and targeted interventions and programs.
Sanjay Arora, Commissioner of Police, Delhi accompanied by Virender Singh, Special Commissioner of Police, Traffic Management Division/ Zone- I and Surender Singh Yadav, Special Commissioner of Police, Traffic Management Division/ Zone- II launched the report.
The 2021 Delhi Road Crash Report noted that in 2021, 4,720 reported road crashes killed 1,239 people in Delhi and injured 4,273 persons. There was a 3.6 percent increase in fatal crashes as compared to 2020.
"Based on the current evidence that crashes are preventable and not by 'accident', we know through years of analysis that these crashes can be identified and prevented. It is a conscious effort into working toward preventing crashes and saving lives, which the Delhi Traffic Police have been doing for several years. The efforts of the Delhi Traffic Police have led to a total reduction in road crash deaths in Delhi by 34 percent over the last decade. Continuing our endeavor to save lives, we have now increased focus on more pedestrian-centric traffic management," said Sanjay Arora.
The report identified pedestrians as the most vulnerable road users and two-wheelers as the second most vulnerable categories constituting 41 percent and 38 percent of the total persons killed in road crash respectively in 2021.
"Road crashes not only affect the livelihood of the persons involved in the crash but also leave a longer imprint on the victims' families. It often pushes people to the brink of poverty and costs the Indian economy around 3-5 percent of the GDP per year. This has a direct impact on our country's development. The focus areas of Delhi Traffic Police have been to enhance the use of technology in smooth traffic management and surveillance and to improve the road infrastructure, particularly in design and standards for the vulnerable categories of road users" said Virender Singh, Special Commissioner of Police, Traffic Management Division/ Zone- I.
"As pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are the most vulnerable road users, the focus will continue on the road safety measures for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists including prosecutions and awareness about usage of helmets, Zebra crossings, Hump Subways, encroachment-free safe pedestrian walkways/footpaths, etc. Delhi Traffic Police has recommended design interventions at crash-prone locations to bring a decline in fatalities" said Surender Singh Yadav, IPS, Special Commissioner of Police, Traffic Management Division/ Zone- II.
In 2021, the Delhi Traffic Police identified 10 black spots - Bhalswa Chowk, Punjabi Bagh Chowk, Mukarba Chowk, Zakhira Flyover, Bilaspur Bus Stand, Mukundpur Chowk, Moti Bagh Flyover, Nangli Poona, Siraspur and Shastri Park/IT Park.
Meanwhile, Outer Ring Road, Ring Road, Rohtak Road, GTK Road, and Najafgarh Road were figured in the list of the most crash-prone roads in Delhi. The report also identified crash-prone zones for pedestrians and motorcyclists where Outer Ring Road and Ring Road were the two top-most crash-prone zones for both groups of road users.
