The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Rise in number of accident victims in city

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Aug 08, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Rise in number of accident victims in city

Rasheed Kappan

HTVs involved in most of the cases

BANGALORE: Last year, pedestrians accounted for over 43 per cent of the fatalities in Bangalore city. About 1,900 pedestrians lost their lives in road accidents in the city between 1999 and 2004. With the roads getting dangerous, this number has gone up again this year.

Supported by such statistics, a city-based traffic think-tank has recommended several safety measures to arrest the trend. Here is a glimpse: Build foot over-bridges or subways with ramps at busy locations such as ISKCON, K.G. Road, Malleswaram Circle, South-End Circle, Town Hall and Peenya S.M. Circle; segregate vehicles and pedestrians by raised kerb foot ways (30 cm and above); create pedestrian refuge islands at junctions; convert heavy pedestrian activity roads to mall roads particularly along Commercial Street, Brigade Road, 8th Cross in Malleswaram and other places.

The think-tank, Traffic Engineers and Safety Trainers, conducted a study analysing the accident trends over the last six years. The study revealed that over 31 per cent of the accidents involving pedestrians were caused by heavy transport vehicles (HTVs), 29 per cent by light motor vehicles and 20 per cent by two-wheelers.

Forty per cent of the pedestrian victims were in the age group of 31 to 50 and a third of the cases involved people aged over 50. The least vulnerable (6.66 per cent) were in the age group of 6 to 18 and 19 to 30, the study has said.

As much as 22.4 per cent of the accidents occurred between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m., while 16.4 per cent of the incidents were between 9 a.m. and noon and from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

As much as 41.8 per cent of the cases were reported between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. Crossing the roads in the night is definitely dangerous. Consumption of alcohol, poor visibility and haphazard crossing have led to 36 per cent of the accidents taking place between 6 p.m. and midnight.

A weekly analysis of the accidents revealed that 28.44 per cent of the cases occurred on Saturdays and Sundays. From Tuesday to Friday, the daily accident rate stood at 18.28 per cent.

The study found that the increase in both population and vehicles coupled with absence of adequate footpath and haphazard crossing of pedestrians were responsible for the rising accidents involving pedestrians.

In the light of the findings, the think-tank has also urged the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) in urban areas and the local authorities in rural areas to ensure a minimum width of 1.5 m to 2.0 m for footpaths, among other suggestions.

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