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Saw this video compiling accidents on some highway in India.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v...type=2&theater

This freaked me out completely. Barring a few cases where visibility of the turn was blocked, everyone else looked like on a suicide mission. If this is how we drive, I am sure India will never leave the pole position in accident deaths. :Frustrati

Part of the blame also lies with the design. Must say, it takes a real dimwit designer to plan an intersection bang in the middle of a curve.

Gosh! Just look at the sheer carelessness with which the morons approaching the intersections are driving. I really don't want to mention the 2 wheelers who are crossing this section who are at their usual best here but watch all the other speeding cars on how they are unable to stop in time only because of ignoring the intersection.

At night, its quite obvious that most of the vehicles taking turns at the intersection are failing to judge the oncoming vehicle's speed.

I really wonder whether some of the attempts by the two-wheelers were suicidal attempts.

agree: That's really a nasty design of that intersection. The least they could do is laying some goddamn speed humps. That would have spared more than half of the accidents at that particular junction. May the departed R.I.P!

Those videos are scary as hell. And as rightly pointed out, very few slowed down at an intersection. Bike riders were surely on a mission to their maker. I wonder how can people do it? Absolutely no fear?

On a highway, you need to check and check and check again and then cross. I wonder though was there any guide for letting the commuters know there is a crossing?

And after reading the comments for the video, you can expect the mental balance of people, almost everyone blames the government:Frustrati

Seems to me this video has clippings from multiple intersections - at least one of them looked OK in terms of design (straight road, well-marked lanes including turning lanes, ample illumination etc.). I'm not a fan of speed humps, but the intersections in this video look as if they really need traffic lights and patrolling to me.

You made a valid point of not having speed breakers on highways. It is basic common sense that people coming on cross roads should wait and watch if vehicles are coming on the main road. That is lacking as evident in the videos.
In such situations, more than having a signal or traffic police to patrol, why don't the authorities build a flyover at this junction so that vehicles on the main road will carry on uninterrupted. Beneath the flyover they can install humps so that vehicles coming in the opposite directions will slow down.
I think this makes sense. But again is it feasible to have flyovers at each and every crossing is a debatable one.

The traffic density at the junction is the mandate for having a signal or a flyover. Unless those numbers are proven, it will be status quo. Or, there has to be somebody with influence who can simply order a flyover to be built.

Looking at the videos, it seems to be a major junction. Honestly speaking some of the clips are scary to the core. RIP to the departed ones. For such kind of major intersections, fly over is a must.
But if the accident rate is shooting up exponentially and if it is not feasible to have a traffic police patrolling the junction, then go for the monstrous speed breakers akin to what we have on the Bangalore - Mysore stretch.

Gotham City,

Thanks for sharing this video with all of us. It's a reminder of how cautious we need to be at traffic junctions, especially in India.

Moved into an independent thread.

Thanks for moving this to an appropriate thread GTO. I had posted my thoughts on this aspect (approaching an intersection)and dangers that lurk around on HVK forum yesterday itself. Summarizing that as below:

• Always slow down at Intersections, Don't ignore to signage and be attentive
  
• If you are new to a particular highway, it takes less than 5 kms of driving to understand the demography of a particular road – Drive slow till you get the idea of the roads
  
• Arrow on lanes indicating L or R on lanes is common sense that you are approaching an intersection or a break in the median – Slow down
  
• Taller Lamp posts is another hint that you are approaching an intersection – Slow down
  
• At nights, not even Rajanikanth can judge your approach speeds, Truckers and Buses will usually fail here: Slow down as soon as you spot a vehicle coming out of the median than pressing the throttle to pass by. No estimation techniques here as the type of vehicle may differ and you will know about it only when you are very close
  
• At nights, most of the highways also have reflectors on the road (RED, YELLOW) often cautioning you that they are not fancy stuff lying on the road but to help you slow down
  
• Remember that Heavy vehicles (Bus and Trucks) are LONG, LAZY and LETHARGIC when they take a Turn through an intersection: You must realize that it will take more time than usual for that long and heavy vehicle to entire pass the road to offer you a free lane to pass at the same speed you are coming. After all, Buses and Trucks are not about 0-60 timings
  
• 200 Rupees is certainly cheaper than your Life: Flash your beams very regularly (particularly at night). It always helps to assess obstacles ahead
  
• Always gradually slow down at intersection than brake abruptly: Remember that the vehicle at rear may not be as attentive as you. And for heaven’s sake, get rid of that screen playing Chikni Chameli Video in place of Rear view Mirror
  
• Yes, if you are attentive watching mirrors (all) regularly you really need not bother about who honks behind and still listen to your wife yelling at you for not taking her to a beauty parlor yesterday!

Something very important too:

When taking a Right Turn at the intersection on a super fast highway, always park your car at an angle such that your vehicle is protruding the least on the Fast lanes on either sides. You park perpendicularly and you are sure to cause a disaster. We have very few highways where the medians are designed in such a way that you can park parallel to the median and then decide when to take a Turn

1. Primary cause is evident, blatant carelessness and disrespect to traffic and rules.

There exists intersections abroad where no signals exist, a simple circle drawn in center of wide open road. But people observe first right let go rule and stop/slow to observe the oncoming traffic, let go the left side traffic first and then proceed. And everybody follows that Religiously.

2. We talk of bikers taking road for granted. Look at the cases of Innova, Scorpio, Trucks and Buses in broad daylight. They could have very well judged and controlled but alas, better sense did not prevail, Overambitious and Misjudgement, taking the road for granted.

3. The Highways junctions depicted in the incidents seem fine if we saw better sense prevail in the users. What could have been better is Big Directional Sign Boards across the breadth of the roads at the intersections, rumblers to reduce the speed just like we find before toll booths, speed breakers (although not designed for uninterrupted highways as in the depictions).

4. It is not just Highways, it is in city such incidents happen even with the signals, directions and police in place. Case in point, I am taking a extremely slow Right Turn at a junction with traffic behind, especially with a BEST Bus right behind me. Indicator is on since long. However, with the short turn at hand, I have left about a 2 foot gap with the car and road divider. But a smarty biker duo probably think they can bypass the bus and me before I can complete my Right Turn. Result, next moment I find the duo on the bike splattered on road ahead after hitting and denting my Right Front Fender. Fortunately for them, nobody was ahead of me and waiting for my turn and I was at just above speed 0 for turning and their heads were still intact even without helmets.

Morons exist in millions in this country. See how casually they cross intersections. The day we learn "Stop, Look and then Proceed" rule, we will have fewer accidents. But then whom are we kidding? We are a highly casual race. "Chalta hai" attitude.

I think before teaching our children A,B,C,D..., we should teach them traffic sense and basic manners and how to accommodate others and wait patiently for our turn, instead of rushing headlong impatiently into everything. Unless that happens, we will continue to invent new ways of killing ourselves.

The videos show lack of patience and lack of speed judgement. 2 wheelers, buses and trucks are the only cause of all the accidents in that video.

One thing to learn is that you must slow right down when approaching an intersection. You cannot trust the guy on other side even if he has seen you.

Not a single truck or bus stopped completely before turning right into opposite lane.

More than half of those accidents look like they were really trying to cheat death. I mean what on earth do people think before crossing an intersection. The ones going straight always have the right of way. Period. The people taking a turn need to atleast stop and check for vehicles before proceeding. Such useless loss of life and time.