[samy1117]

RIP.

The change in number of road lanes is very common in highways all across the world.
The lack of proper signage is one of the biggest contributing factor to unfortunate accidents like this.

For example, in USA highways, wherever a particular road lane ends, we can see highly visible markings and signages like "Merge", "Lane Ends 100 Meters" and continuous big arrow signs on the lane surface to alert the driver to move to the adjoining lane.
This type of markings wouldn't cost much for NHAI to implement on Indian roads.

[msprabhakar]

Originally Posted by R2D2

c) No seat belt! The distinguished gentlemen in the back seat should have known better. They would've survived had they been belted.

I for one, do not begin driving till everyone is belted and strongly believe the driver of the car should take ownership and insist on all passengers using seat belts without which the driver should not begin the journey.

You should (at least now) advise Ratan Tata...

[Tanmay007]

Originally Posted by androdev

Would the ADAS or similar safety equipment sold currently in India help avoid such fatal accidents? .

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

The Speed Assist and Auto Emergency Braking systems won't slam the brakes beyond a certain threshold to avoid creating further dangerous situations (e.g. rear endings).

I’d like to believe AEB would’ve at the very least reduced impact. AEB does indeed slam the brakes with 100% force, just that it’s limited to bringing down speeds by 50km/h after which it disengages (only because the system expects user to hit brakes by then), at least on the XUV700. A 50km/h speed drop could be enough to save a life.

[Turbohead]

Originally Posted by Arjun Reddy

Also there is a CCTV footage of the GLC passing the RTO check point.

https://Youtu.be/1KhnFhOGU1c

Ah! Another one of those over speeding video evidence. There is no way we can decipher the speed from that video unless we know how much distance was covered in the given time in this specific frame.

Plus the Merc looks fast only because the Safari in the opposite lane seems relatively slow. Anyone who's driven on a highway knows that when a car wants to cross the road, you will tend to slow down significantly and that is exactly what happened. The Safari actually slowed down to avoid the Xylo, which doesn't seemed to have stopped at all before taking a turn, and then picks up speed again. Safari, if I'm not wrong, is not really known for outright acceleration and therefore picks up speed gradually but not quick enough to make the car look as far as the Merc. It's unlikely the Merc is over 110 kmph

If anything, the Safari and Xylo near miss is the icing on the cake about our 'edge on the seat' road behaviour.

This incident has truly opended my eyes on how news is really reported and how quickly assumptions can be stamped as facts for the public to munch on without any proper scientific investigation. The only good thing this accident has brought to light is the emphasis on wearing rear seat belts.

What this over speeding conclusion by the cops and media will bring about is speed cameras in non accident prone zones purely for revenue generation with no fixes on road design/driver training/stricter licensing etc.

If I'm paying toll on a highway, I expect the road to safely help me travel from point A to point B with an average speed of 80-100 kmph while following all the rules. If I can't, there's seriously a flaw in road design/ road behaviour which frankly are never treated as items that need improvement.

And I don't buy the argument that we should just continue to drive defensively by going extra slow and ignore the fact that NHAI/ State Highway dept do not move their finger to maintain or improve highways, while collecting tolls which increase year on year, which are used by vehicles that have paid huge taxes to get sold and registered in the first place.

[ajayc123]

Feels sad to see such a high profile guy go this way. Hopefully some folks will learn a lesson just due to its shock value. If we do a poll, how many of us actually ensure that back seat passengers wear seat belts, we can expect dismal results.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by msprabhakar

You should (at least now) advise Ratan Tata...

I am sure the distinguished and wise gentleman that he is, Ratan Tata, car afficionado himself, would have learned his own lessons from the death of the single largest shareholder of Tata Sons. What do you say?

[KPR]

Originally Posted by supermax

I think we are going about this the wrong way. We really shouldn't be expecting the government to interfere in each and everything. Why should they impose a rule of continuous alarm? Why not just have a PSA, like that Mukesh tambaku ad that airs before movies? Lets all collectively do our bit for the cause by starting the change within our own spheres of influence. Do your family and friends buckle up in the back seat in your car? If not, start there. If they already do, that's great, but try to get them also to do the same, and you'll have already made a difference.

/S

By bringing front seat belt reminder alarm I see a change among few car users. That irritating continuous beep force them wear belt. Ideally this should be implemented for all seat belts in car.

[ajayc123]

Originally Posted by KPR

By bringing front seat belt reminder alarm I see a change among few car users. That irritating continuous beep force them wear belt. Ideally this should be implemented for all seat belts in car.

I think most of the folks in Delhi wear the front seat belts to avoid getting caught by cops and avoid hefty fine. If the rear seat belts are made mandatory, compliance should improve.

[Guite]

People of Cyrus Mistry's stature are very important to the country. He is a wealth creator and employment generator for many people across India. It's a great loss. May his soul rest in peace.

I hope the authorities wake up to the need for safer roads. Speed enforcement is not an end in itself. Our roads are inherently unsafe due to bad design and lack of traffic discipline. There are so many near misses even in city traffic that it is actually surprising accidents are not more. It is not that I want it to be more. Many people are just playing with luck.

[msprabhakar]

Originally Posted by R2D2

What do you say?

I say, don't underestimate human behaviour. Behavioural safety is a subject that every industrial engineer studies. Ratan Tata (or Cyrus Mistry) not wearing a safety belt is no different from a construction worker nor wearing a helmet, even if provided. The reason for both behaviours stem from trying to answer a simple question: "Why do people behave unsafely". People often behave unsafely because they have never been hurt before while doing their job in an unsafe way: 'I've always done the job this way' being a familiar comment. This may well be true, but the potential for an accident is never far away as illustrated by various accident triangles. Heinrich's triangle, for example, suggests that for every 330 unsafe acts, 29 will result in minor injuries and 1 in a major or lost time incident. Over an extended period of time, therefore, the lack of any injuries for those who are consistently unsafe is actually reinforcing the very behaviors that in all probability will eventually lead them to be seriously injured. The principle being illustrated here is that the consequences of behaving unsafely will nearly always determine future unsafe behavior, simply because reinforced behavior tends to be repeated.

It's a long, slow and painful process to start changing safety culture. But it invariably starts from the top, implemented consistently, and communicated continuously.

[vegitakarthik]

Originally Posted by Dead_Pedal

I think it's time manufacturers implement seat belt reminder function for all seats occupied in cars and not just for the front two seats.

Exactly. Need seat belt remainder for all seats. Our new car Tata Safari has passenger seat belt remainder. Previous one didn't - Ford figo (Its a boon. Now the constant pinging irritates front passenger enough to make them wear seatbelts. They never listened previously) Rear seat belt remainder should be standardized as well for all cars.

[LokiPilaniya]

I'm not sure why people are talking about bad road design while it isn't if you are driving within the speed limits. If someone is driving above speed limits and gets into an accident then he/she is solely responsible for that accident. It is as simple as that.

I hope insurance companies come forward and start offering discounts to those who have GPS enabled dashcams in their car or maybe make dashcams mandatory. They(auto/life or any insurance provider) should also reject any claims if car was driven above the speed limits in case of an accident. This will further put pressure on people to drive within speed limit.

As per 2021 data of road accidents in India there was 1 death every 3 minutes, thats 426 people every single day! But media and people jumps in only when there is a high profile case!

Rest in peace to everyone who died in road accidents.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by androdev

Would the ADAS or similar safety equipment sold currently in India help avoid such fatal accidents? I mean, do the cars sold in India have the ability to apply emergency brakes in a situation like this? Equally important, would the car brake itself when it should not (false positive trigger) at the risk of being rear-ended?

Yes if it was crashing into a stationary vehicle/pedestrian/cyclist or any other road participant. But not for road features like concrete walls and guardrails at high speeds. It is allowed only at lower speeds and from the parking system only. Please dont ask me why

[mayukh42]

Originally Posted by djs

And Google Maps 3D view shows elevation variation which may have hindered visibility of driver.

This might not be a drop in elevation, but the algorithm trying to interpolate. Usually the gradient for a bridge is not like this, but the opposite (i.e. elevated w.r.t. approach road).

Still, the slight curve in the approach causes a blind view, enough to cause an accident like this. Have been to this stretch more than once, and I remember commenting that it is a disaster waiting to happen (there are multiple bridges like this, not just one). The engineering is not safe here. They should have had at least adequete signs or rumble strips to warn of the change in alignment/ distribution of lanes.

Having said that, it is possible that the car was overspeeding, because the definition of that is to be at a speed where you cannot slow down before what limits your vision, irrespective of what the speed limits say.

R.I.P.

[RaghuVis]

I feel the response from TATA regarding this unfortunate accident and demise has been rather awkward, to say the least.

Apart from a condolence message from chairman Chandrasekaran, there has been no mention of his demise on any social media channels of TATA. He was their ex-chairman of TATA Sons for three years and even if he was thrown out, he was still one of the largest shareholders with a huge huge history of close connection with the group.

Adding salt to the injury is that they went ahead with their regular work and had some song and dance events as part of some launches, even as his funeral is planned for tomorrow. A serious black mark on their often hyped ethical values!