KOCHI: Contrary to popular perception, the majority of road accidents in the state occur during daytime and in the winter months (October-February), when roads are dry and visibility is clear, and not on the slippery roads of the rainy season. This was a key finding of the ‘Road Accidents in Kerala during 2018-2022’ report released by the department of economics and statistics.
According to the study, road accidents over the five-year period under review claimed 19,468 lives — which translates to about one in 10 accidents. What’s more worrying is the worst affected is the 18-45 age group, which accounts for nearly 60.5% of total accidental deaths. Simply put, more people in their prime are losing their lives in road accidents.
“Our study shows that a large number of road accidents in Kerala occur during the winter season (October-February), a period after the monsoon spell when the roads are dry and the visibility is clear. Since there is a pleasant climate during this season and the roads are dry, there is a temptation for drivers to press the accelerator. Several festivals take place in the state during this period, and more people take to the roads. These might be the reasons for the spike in accidents during the period,” said the report. Fewer crashes in the rainy season could be because vehicles move at lower speeds as a result of traffic congestion and drivers adopt caution to avoid skidding on slippery roads, it said.
Justice K S Radhakrishnan, who headed the three-member panel on road safety appointed by the Supreme Court, said permanent measures should be taken to prevent fatalities on the roads. “Several reasons contributed to the rise of road fatalities in the state, including poor road discipline, bad condition of roads, and serious lapses on the part of the motor vehicles department in installing proper signage on roads, especially at accident hot spots, and adopting stringent measures,” he told TNIE.
According to the report, the 2018-2022 period witnessed a total of 1,86,375 road accidents, claiming 19,468 lives and causing injuries to 2,11,534 people.
About 67% of total accidents are caused by the fault of drivers, it said. While the causes of almost 4% are unknown. The fault of cyclists, pedestrians, technical defects, rash, negligent driving, etc, is very low. Almost 29% of accidents are due to other reasons, which include poor lighting, stray animals, neglect of civic bodies, lack of violations, bad weather, bad roads, etc. Besides, 23% of total accidents occurred on national highways, 20% on state highways, and 57% on other roads, which include district, rural and urban stretches.
The majority of roads that are undivided, single-lane highways; high population density that leads to increased vehicle density on narrow roads; and impatient drivers who are always in a hurry all lead to such a state, said the report.
It said that even though the number of accidents is lower during the night, accident severity (deaths per 100 accidents) is higher at night compared to daytime. This might be because there is less traffic, speeding is common and a large percentage of accidents at night remains unnoticed for hours, causing delay in hospitalisation. Mere minutes can make the difference between life and death, the report cautioned.