Road accidents kill 20 people an hour, two-thirds are 18-45 yrs: MoRTH

National and state highways account for more than half of accidents and fatalities despite being less than 5 per cent of the total road length

India recorded 480,583 road accidents in 2023, resulting in the deaths of 172,890 people and injuring another 462,825, according to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways’ (MoRTH) report titled "Road Accidents in India 2023".

 

The numbers translate to 20 deaths and 55 accidents every hour, the report said.

 

Young adults most affected

 

For the fourth consecutive year, victims were predominantly in the 18–45 age group, accounting for more than two-thirds of the fatalities. The working-age population of 18–60 years accounted for over 83 per cent of the deaths. 

 

Where accidents occur

 

Although national and state highways account for less than 5 per cent of the total road length, they witnessed more than half of all accidents and fatalities.

 

"Category wise distribution of accidents and fatalities reveals that the Highways with around 5 per cent of total road network in the country accounted for more than 53 per cent of total accidents and 59 per cent of fatalities which needs attention," the ministry noted.

 

About 68.5 per cent of road deaths occurred in rural areas, compared to 31.5 per cent in urban areas.

 

Causes and patterns

Human error remained the dominant cause of accidents. Overspeeding contributed to 68 per cent of road accident deaths, followed by wrong-side driving at 5.5 per cent. Straight stretches of roads, rather than sharp bends, witnessed the majority of crashes.

 

Speaking at the Business Standard Infrastructure Summit, Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari last week had said: "Every year, we have five lakh accidents and one lakh eighty thousand deaths. Out of these, 66 per cent belong to the age group of 18 to 36. I’m really sorry, but first you need to understand what the problem is... the problem is ... human behaviour."

 

The report highlighted that 16,025 people died in road accidents for not wearing seat belts, including 8,441 drivers and 7,584 passengers. 

It added two-wheelers accounted for 44.8 per cent of road accident deaths, the highest among vehicles, followed by cars, taxis, and vans (12.4 per cent), while pedestrians made up 20.4 per cent.  "During 2023, a total of 54,568 persons were killed who were not wearing helmet, of which 39,160 (71.8%) persons were drivers and 15,408 (28.2%) were passengers," the report stated.

State-wise picture

 

Tamil Nadu reported the highest number of accidents (67,213), while Uttar Pradesh had the largest number of deaths (23,652).