[wildsdi5530]

There was an analysis in today's Times of India where the figures are given. The explanation is that the roads have become safer because of reduced speed due to traffic congestion.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/67154600.cms

[dark.knight]

RIP Journalism - As far as the article is concerned.

Now, whether the factoids are concerned, it is always the principle of the half a glass of water - a thousand people can call the glass half empty which is a bad thing and a thousand people can call the glass half full which is a good thing and each will have a lakh of supporters to chime in accordingly.

Indian roads are getting safer, as has been said above, due to extreme congestion and increased camera monitoring. Yes road rules awareness has increased, but only so that the laws can be flouted.. ask any motorist who peeps around for cameras before jumping the signal, ask any motorist who peeps into "usual" traffic police traps and proceeds in red signal if the police aren't standing there.

The biggest reason why I think that we're as worse off as before? I was doing a good 60 on a free road with a bike ahead, a traffic constable jumps right in front to stop the bike and I slam the brakes because I had to, irrespective of getting rear-ended, luckily there were none behind me. The constable was wrangling the bike, desperately going for the keys as the rider wobbled a little, gained balance, turned and escaped the long arm of the law. He EVEN looked back as the constable gave an irritated look and shooed him away. If a constable can jump right into a lane which is known for fast moving vehicles, endangering his own life to catch an errant rider, if the rider doesn't know any better than to risk his life and run away and if I were put in such a situation in what seemed to be for a second - a free moving road.. then there is literally no awareness of safety or law, even by its upholders.

[acidkill]

For chennai, I can say that the police works hard to ensure there is no drunken driving..

The whole city is now wired to cctv cameras and challans are being issued on digital basis for violations.

As far as national highways are concerned several "blind spots" are being fixed.

As far as the nay sayers go... In a democracy I have to respect their right to say nay. But the world doesn't change because of negative views either

So there is change.

[drsk]

Originally Posted by paragsachania

• Easy and safe entry and exit from highways - No shortcuts then
• Well managed cross-roads with underpass or overpasses - No wrong side driving then
• Proper road signage and markings - No untoward accidents to a missed exit
• Well designed break in the medians - So one can wait safely and take that turn
• Redesign and closure of illegal and unscientific break in the medians
• Dangerously placed speedbreakers that increase accidents than reducing one
• Uniform width of a particular road - This often has mislead drivers and caused accidents
• Well illuminated roads, at least with reflective material not just for lane dividing but also for marking the shoulders and the medians - This helps immensely at nights, especially when it rains and dark roads turn more darker after getting soaked in water
• Proper drains to avoid water logging next to the median - This will reduce accidents due to aquaplaning...so on

Good list! I would like to add couple more to that:
* Barricades - have seen them in many state highways and even some national highways/toll roads!
* Zero (or even negative) Banking Angle at turns - I remember studying this in my Physics class in my primary school and my dad showing me them on the roads when we travelled. Now I have seen the roads within cities (even in major cities like Bangalore) and highways with no banking at all or sometimes even negative banking angle which highly increases the risk of accidents.

[Samba]

Its good that, Indian roads are getting safer than its earlier days. Hope our government implement more stricter rules.
To reduce more road accidents i feel, issuing driving license must be made much more stringent. In Indian the base line is itself weak.

But still the main problem is in the mindset of most of the people.

Few example's-

1) On 1st January one of my friend has given a status in Facebook, stating- its a bad start for her new-year as she got caught by the cops for drink and drive. It not only ends here, she also added that, as she knew cops will be there on the main road, that's why she avoided the main road but still she got caught. Then she cursed the cops because they ceased her vehicle and her driving license.

I was totally surprised that, she was actually cursing the cops for doing their duty.
She was cursing the person who was not spending the new years night with his family and doing his duty just for our safety!

2) We all know the fiasco which took place in Pune, when wearing helmet while riding two wheeler's were made mandatory!

3) Last February at Goa, while renting a bike i asked for an extra helmet for my wife and the rental guys told me, its not required as the cops wont see if the pillion is wearing a helmet or not! The rule is only for the rider.
When i insisted on an extra helmet those guys were literally pissed off and told me, i need to pay Rs 200 per day for my wife's helmet! Later the owner came and agreed to give me the extra helmet without paying anything extra!

[LazyGunner]

While all the points stated in the thread earlier about government's duty to improve the infrastructure are valid, I believe the biggest factor in making our roads safer comes from the road-users, yes all of us. Thanks to TBHP I now know a lot of things about traffic rules, road safety and driving manners which were not taught at my driving school. Try asking your colleagues who drive to office everyday and I can bet more than 50% of the people don't know the difference between broken white lines, solid white lines and double yellow lines dividing a road into two lanes. I have been shouted at on the road by my fellow road users driving their white board cars for following the rules/driving carefully. I have been laughed at by my friends for asking them to wear seatbelts while sitting in the 2nd row during our road trip. I was ridiculed by my colleagues for buying a helmet worth 6000 rupees when I could have escaped police fines by buying 500 rupees open face helmet. Mind you, these are educated people building complex softwares to make our lives easier in various ways. One would expect better from them. I haven't even started talking about our beloved cabbies.

I also believe that increasing fines has only resulted in increased bribery and not much of strict enforcement of traffic rules. People have to understand that following traffic rules is for our own safety and not to avoid paying the police. I don't know why it's not talked about much, but our driving schools have to be made better in this regard. DL tests held by our authorities are a joke in many states even today.

Improving all these and building better roads (with well marked exits, proper/logical placement of speed breakers and U-turns on highways among other things) will definitely go a long way in making our roads safe.

[Ajeetkrc390]

Let's take a situation, 'You're about to appear in 12th class boards and just like many other Indian kids you might also have made a deal with your parents or other family members to get a 2 wheeler or a car depending upon the marks you score'. Now to be a driver/rider of any vehicle you would need to get on the 'road'. And before we even start I would like to let you know that it's a mad jungle out there.

For starters, the unpredictability of Indian roads is way too uncertain, anything can happen at any time!! And that's also one of the reasons which make the parents think a lot before letting their kids have their first vehicle.

With that said, I would also like to highlight, that the quality of Indian roads isn't great too. You will surely be able to find one of these on every road for sure: potholes, gravel, or uneven surfaces and it doesn't stop there. Pedestrians, stray dogs, and cattle, etc. can show up from any side of the road which again raises the concern of safety.

Going forward, it's not all bad though. And as the time would pass you would develop a road sense which would help you to understand your surroundings in a better way, as every visit on the road would add to your experience. It may be good or bad but it will count, and in the long run. Your journey on the road will eventually become either a task (when there's too much traffic) or a joyful ride (when you find an empty long stretch) as ups and downs are always there.

So, to sum it up, being on Indian roads and learning more about them with all the time you spend there is only going to make you a better driver/rider. And like a lot of people say if someone can drive/ride on Indian roads that person can drive/ride anywhere in the whole world. Well, that's because Indian roads urge you to be constantly active and focused on your actions on the road as the level of unpredictability is quite high.

Which in my opinion happens to be a plus point because no matter where you are, your skills are always there with you.

So all in all, it happens to be a very unique experience which should be learned with patience and confidence to avoid any mishaps.

[Risky4327]

Originally Posted by Ajeetkrc390

1. For starters, the unpredictability of Indian roads is way too uncertain, anything can happen at any time!! And that's also one of the reasons which make the parents think a lot before letting their kids have their first vehicle.

2. With that said, I would also like to highlight, that the quality of Indian roads isn't great too. You will surely be able to find one of these on every road for sure: potholes, gravel, or uneven surfaces and it doesn't stop there. Pedestrians, stray dogs, and cattle, etc. can show up from any side of the road which again raises the concern of safety.

1. I know many parents who handover the keys of bikes or cars to their underaged kids. Once three kids in a Fiesta hit an auto rickshaw from behind at high speed, I was in that auto with my wife in Surat about 10 years ago. My wife was unconscious for 10 minutes and the driver was bleeding from his injured feet. The kids fled in the Fiesta and got caught at the next intersection by cops. As per locals, they were celebrating after the class 10 exam results were out .

2. I do not consider pot holes, speed breakers, stray animals jay walkers, etc as surprise now. Not even the bikers or auto drivers coming towards us in the same lane of a 4 lane NH. What bothers me most is the sudden diversion or deep excavations in the middle of the lane on our "ever under construction" highways. Many a times these are not properly marked. Absense of proper signages on highways which are new to you, turn out to be real killers.

[Ajeetkrc390]

I agree with you @Risky4327 parents should not let their underage kids use their vehicle for leisure activities.