A death march on the roads

It is quite unfortunate that road crashes continue to take lives without any respite, mocking the laws of the land as underage or ill-trained drivers go on joy rides with heavy vehicles before the "watchful" eyes of the transport bosses. Tragic events like that of entire families getting wiped out in a single incident are occurring far too frequently. In such cases, the surviving minors are the worst victims, with little to no support from the state. The tragic tale of Bristy Akhter, who lost both her parents in a road accident on Friday, shows how lawlessness is ruling the roost on our roads. Reportedly, on the same day, as many as 16 people lost their lives in road crashes all over the country.

A great deal has been said about improving the situation on the roads; for example, budgetary allocations have been increased, new roads have been built and some old ones repaired and widened. A road safety law has also been passed. But, in reality, there is no reflection of the reassurance given by the relevant authorities about improving road safety. According to the latest estimate by police, based on GDs and cases filed, the number of deaths from road accidents in 2021 saw nearly a 30 percent jump from the previous year, with about 5,088 individuals reported dead. The actual number, as per independent estimates, would be higher.

This is despite the fact that many vehicles were off roads because of the pandemic. It is worth noting that nearly 60 percent of the road crashes take place on the national and regional highways. Buses and trucks are mostly responsible for crushing smaller vehicles like private cars, microbus, three-wheelers, motorcycles, rickshaws, easybikes, etc. It seems, however, futile to talk about the many systematic failures leading to this scenario. Just consider, although a number of bodies exist to ensure this doesn't happen, they are not empowered enough to do their job and lack effective coordination to get desired results. There is no dearth of plans either—what's missing is strong will and judicious, coordinated execution. 

We urge the transport authorities to take a long, hard look at their failure to deliver promised results on our roads. It is clearly not enough to have a road safety law. What's essential is that they implement the law to the letter, without any concession given to the powerful transport owners and associations who are mostly responsible for the consistently deteriorating road safety situation. The government must deliver.