Most road deaths in Delhi occur in hit-and-run crashes

According to the Delhi Road Crash Fatality Report by the transport department, in 2021, 1,238 people were killed in 1,199 crashes reported in Delhi

Cases of hit-and-run led to more than half of the deaths due to road accidents in the national capital in 2021, according to data from the transport department .

According to the UN’s Global Plan for the Decade of Action 2021-2030, India is one of the 39 countries that has committed to reducing road traffic deaths and injuries by at least 50%. (PTI)

According to the Delhi Road Crash Fatality Report by the transport department, in 2021, 1,238 people were killed in 1,199 crashes reported in Delhi. Of these, 719 were killed in the 708 hit-and-run cases reported that year, the report released in September 2022 stated.

Data for the year 2022 was not available with the department, according to officials.

“The 2022 comprehensive data is not available yet but speeding is definitely still the single largest reason for crashes and deaths on Delhi’s roads,” said Shahzad Alam, special commissioner, transport department.

To prevent such deaths, the transport department will run a campaign against speeding during the seven-day UN Road Safety Week starting Monday (May 15), officials said.

The campaign will include holding a safety symposium for all stakeholders, a bus lane enforcement drive and a visit to a drivers’ training centre for students of Class 11, who are likely to apply for driving license soon.

“If controlled, speeding will drastically reduce the number of people being killed for no fault of theirs in road crashes. The safety symposium is one of our efforts to bring together all stakeholders and sensitise them towards safety through speed control,” said Alam.

He added that apart from government officials, expert bodies, research organisations and other groups, children will be the focus group at the symposium being organised on May 17, wherein they will be explained the importance of school safety zones. The symposium will also be followed by a training of subdivisional magistrates, Alam said.

“We realised that this was one of our weak links. The SDMs who are on ground and issuing challans need to be told about road safety awareness and steps that they can take to prevent crashes,” said Alam.

Officials will also be conducting an exposure visit of Class 11 students to the Sarai Kale Khan driver’s testing tracks for a brief training on road safety rules. Officials said that since most of these students are in the 16-18 age group, they will be applying for learners’ and permanent license soon. The training is aimed at catching future drivers while they are young and sensitising them towards following traffic rules.

Other events such as challaning drives and intersection redesigning will also be done during the week.

The theme of the seventh UN Global Road Safety Week year’s is “rethink mobility” which aims at making walking, cycling, and public transport safe and convenient so that people can make the shift to active, sustainable mobility. It will end on May 21.

According to the UN’s Global Plan for the Decade of Action 2021-2030, India is one of the 39 countries that has committed to reducing road traffic deaths and injuries by at least 50% in this period.