Solo crashes behind 1/4 of fatal mishaps in TN: Study

CHENNAI: Nearly one in four fatal road accidents on roads in the State last year were due to self-falls or single-vehicle crashes with 2-wheelers accounting for 80 per cent of such accidents, an analysis by the State Crime Record Bureau on the road accident pattern has revealed. Of TN’s 17,080 fatal accidents last year, 3,929 or 23% were solo vehicle crashes.

While motorcycles alone are involved in 3,168 self-fatal accidents, i.e. nearly 80% of single-vehicle crashes, 4-wheelers including cars, jeeps, vans and taxis accounted for 375 and autorickshaws 127 self-crashes.

A senior police officer said they had to rely only on the causation of data recorded in the FIR where the bigger vehicle is the accused. “We sought two details — the vehicles involved and whether they were travelling in the same direction, opposite or cross direction. The data set the pattern of the accidents,” the official said.

A total of 12,251 fatal 2-wheeler accidents happened in the State in 2022, accounting for 61% of total fatal accidents. “Of these, 3,168 are self-falls or self-crashes, including hitting a tree, road median or stationary vehicle. Only 5% of such accidents happen due to bad roads and in 95% of the cases, it is due to drunken driving. However, on record, drunken driving was not recorded to help the victim claim insurance,” the officer said.

The study also revealed that head-on collisions between two-wheelers have resulted in 1,980 fatal accidents with most of such accidents happening on village and district roads.

WHEN PEDESTRIANS ARE ROAD-KILL

Tamil Nadu has the dubious distinction of topping the country in recording the highest number of road accidents for a fifth consecutive year in 2022 with 64,105 accidents and second position with 17,884 road fatalities.

Nearly 87% of the total number of fatal road accidents involve two-wheelers and pedestrians, as the highways are designed for cars and bigger vehicles without considering the need for motorcyclists and pedestrians crossing it, reveal the Special Task Force on Road Safety (STF-RS) sources.

According to the road accident data in 2022, out of the 17,080 fatal accidents, the State Highways (SH) had recorded 6,107 accidents (36%) and the National Highways reported 5,582 accidents (33%).

The NH records the highest number of pedestrian fatal accidents of 1,606 out of a total of 4,442 accidents in 2022. While the SH recorded 1,604 fatal accidents involving pedestrians.

Sources in the task force said that as per the Indian Road Congress code, the NH has to provide an underpass for pedestrians. “Need of the pedestrians was not taken into account while constructing Highways. It’s one of the major reasons for accidents,” sources said, adding that most road junctions were badly designed.

Now, the NH has taken up construction of the underpass but it’s a long-term work. The short-term measures should be taken at accident spots through the engineering measure (for slowing down traffic).

“We’re not asking them to do anything special; just follow the IRC code to make the roads safe. Providing a transverse warning before the junctions is one such move to warn vehicles of approaching junctions. We have to control the vehicle speed by engineering measures,” the task force added.

The official also pointed out that previously, all the blackspots were identified on the NH. “Now when we studied the black-spots, we found 70% of the black-spots are in rural areas along the State Highways. We’re focusing on the road engineering of the SH,” the official added. “Unlike the NH which has paved shoulders that allow two-wheelers ride on it, the SH don’t have such space and they have to ride on the main carriageway.”

Retired professor KP Subramanian, visiting faculty, Division of Transportation Engineering, Anna University, said that 80% of the accidents happened due to the driver’s fault. “No doubt that accidents are also caused by defective geometric elements but that’s only a tiny percentage. Roads can’t be designed without following the IRC guidelines. Whether it’s the radius of curvature, super-elevation or carriage elevation, everything has to conform with the IRC guidelines,” he said.

High on spirits leads to road accidents: Cops

Does the practice of consuming alcohol outside home contribute to road accidents induced by drunk-driving? Yes, said cops.

“Though the official data shows a meagre number of accidents and fatalities involving drunk-drivers, the actual numbers are much higher,” said a senior police officer.

As per the road accident data in 2022, the State had reported 264 accidents involving drunk-driving and 71 fatalities. “Most of the time, the drunken driving is not recorded to help victims avail insurance claims,” the officer added.

Two-wheelers, which account for 61% of fatal accidents that happened in the State, have been involved in 3,168 self-falls or single motorcycle fatal accidents. “Only 5% of such two-wheeler accidents happen due to bad roads. The remaining happened because of drunk-driving,” he pointed out.

Officials opined that Tamil Nadu and southern Andhra Pradesh had more drunk-driving accidents, as people consumed alcohol outside their homes due to cultural issues. “Though alcohol consumption is high in Kerala, the State has fewer drunk-driving accidents compared to TN, as drinking at home is acceptable among most families there. In TN, it’s frowned upon, which leads to accidents,” the official stated.

Activist Jayaram Venkatesan of Arappor Iyakkam was doubtful over the theory of cultural-acceptance of alcohol consumption in Kerala. “The high number of accidents in TN is due to high consumption of alcohol. The State government’s income from alcohol sale was Rs 3,500 crore in 2003. This has gone up by 10 times in 20 years, and implies an exponential increase in the number of drinkers. It proportionately increases the number of road accidents when they travel from bars and homes after drinking session,” he averred.