Road Safety Challenges And Reforms In India 2025

Road safety remains a critical issue in India in 2025. Recent mass-casualty crashes in Rajasthan and Telangana have brought into light systemic problems. Over 1.7 lakh people lost their lives in road accidents in 2023 alone. These incidents expose weaknesses in licensing, enforcement, infrastructure, and trauma care. Addressing these factors is essential for reducing fatalities and improving overall road safety.

Licensing System Deficiencies

The driver licensing system is intended to filter unfit drivers. However, many licenses are granted without formal training. Driving tests are often superficial, limited to small test tracks. Commercial drivers, who operate heavy vehicles, lack standardised safety training. After licensing, there are few checks on drivers’ skills, fitness, or alertness. Fatigued or ill drivers continue to operate vehicles without detection. This gap increases the risk of crashes involving heavy vehicles and passengers.

Enforcement Challenges

Speeding, overloading, lane violations, and driving under the influence are leading causes of fatal crashes. Enforcement relies heavily on manual policing. This approach is resource-constrained and prone to errors and discretion. Technology such as automated cameras and digital challans exists but is unevenly deployed. Data integration is weak and penalties often go unrecovered. The Supreme Court has urged adoption of electronic enforcement and technology-based deterrence. However, implementation remains inconsistent across states.

Infrastructure Weaknesses

Many highways and urban roads have poor design and maintenance. Roads built decades ago focus on speed rather than safety. Features like poorly banked curves, missing crash barriers, inadequate lighting, and lack of rest areas increase risk. Maintenance gaps include broken dividers, unmarked construction zones, and encroachments. Urban pedestrian infrastructure is minimal, forcing foot traffic to share space with heavy vehicles. Pilot projects show design-led changes can reduce fatalities. The Mumbai-Pune Expressway’s Zero Fatality Corridor programme halved crash deaths through engineering and enforcement reforms.

Trauma Care and Emergency Response

Survival after a crash often depends on timely trauma care. Ambulance availability and efficiency vary widely, especially in rural areas where delays can exceed an hour. Victims are frequently rescued by untrained bystanders or police without proper equipment. Nearby health facilities often lack trauma specialists, blood banks, and resuscitation capacity. A proposed Right to Trauma Care law aims to enforce time-bound emergency response standards. Coordination between licensing, infrastructure, enforcement, and trauma care is crucial. These sectors currently operate in silos, limiting overall safety improvements.

Questions for UPSC:

1. Taking example of India’s road safety challenges, discuss the role of technology in enhancing law enforcement and reducing traffic violations.
2. Examine the impact of poor infrastructure on public safety in urban and rural areas. How can design-led interventions improve outcomes?
3. Analyse the importance of integrated emergency healthcare systems in reducing mortality from accidents. Discuss in the light of trauma care in India.
4. Critically discuss the effectiveness of driver licensing systems in ensuring road safety. With suitable examples, suggest reforms to improve driver competency and monitoring.

Answer Hints:

1. Taking example of India’s road safety challenges, discuss the role of technology in enhancing law enforcement and reducing traffic violations.

1. Technology enables automated detection of violations like speeding, red-light jumping, and lane violations through cameras and sensors.
2. Digital challan systems facilitate quicker penalty issuance and tracking, reducing manual errors and discretion.
3. Integration of data from multiple sources improves monitoring and enforcement consistency across regions.
4. Technology-based enforcement acts as a deterrent, reducing repeat offenses and improving compliance.
5. Current challenges include limited coverage, patchy adoption across states, and weak penalty recovery mechanisms.
6. Supreme Court directives emphasize adoption of electronic enforcement standards for uniformity and effectiveness.

2. Examine the impact of poor infrastructure on public safety in urban and rural areas. How can design-led interventions improve outcomes?

1. Poorly designed roads (e.g., unbanked curves, missing crash barriers) increase accident severity and frequency.
2. Inadequate lighting and lack of rest areas contribute to driver fatigue and nighttime crashes.
3. Maintenance lapses like broken dividers, unmarked zones, and encroachments create hazardous conditions.
4. Urban pedestrian infrastructure is minimal, forcing pedestrians to share roads with heavy vehicles, increasing risk.
5. Design-led interventions (e.g., Mumbai-Pune Expressway Zero Fatality Corridor) have halved fatalities through engineering and enforcement.
6. Upgrading infrastructure with safety as priority transforms ‘unforgiving roads’ into safer corridors, reducing crash impact.

3. Analyse the importance of integrated emergency healthcare systems in reducing mortality from accidents. Discuss in the light of trauma care in India.

1. Timely trauma care within the ‘golden hour’ increases survival chances post-accident.
2. Wide disparities exist in ambulance availability and efficiency, especially in rural areas causing critical delays.
3. First responders often lack proper training and equipment, affecting initial victim care quality.
4. Nearby hospitals frequently lack trauma specialists, blood banks, and resuscitation facilities essential for critical care.
5. A proposed Right to Trauma Care law aims to mandate time-bound emergency response and coordinated trauma networks.
6. Integration of trauma care with licensing, enforcement, and infrastructure ensures holistic road safety and reduces fatalities.

4. Critically discuss the effectiveness of driver licensing systems in ensuring road safety. With suitable examples, suggest reforms to improve driver competency and monitoring.

1. Licensing intended as a filter for driver fitness is undermined by lack of formal training and superficial driving tests.
2. Commercial drivers often receive no standardised safety training despite operating heavy vehicles carrying many passengers.
3. Post-licensing checks on driver skills, physical fitness, and alertness are rare, allowing fatigued or ill drivers on roads.
4. Examples from India show licenses can be obtained without adequate competency assessment, increasing crash risks.
5. Reforms include mandatory formal training, standardised tests, periodic fitness evaluations, and continuous monitoring.
6. Use of technology for driver assessment and stricter regulation can enhance competency and reduce accidents.