National Road Safety Essay in English nearly 650 words for the students who are looking for this topic. We have written this essay in easy words so that every students can understand. We have tried to uphold accurate point to make this essay perfect. Lets Read ….
National Road Safety Essay
India has the second largest road network in the world, only after the United States of America. According to the official estimates the total road length of India is 63.73 lakh km. It has been categorised into various categories like national highways (NH), state highways (SH), district roadways, border roads, urban roads, village or rural roads, and international highways. Ironically, according to the world road statistics report (WRS) 2018 India also ranks number 1 in the number of deaths caused by road accidents and 3rd in the number of people injured in road accidents. Nearly 1.5 million people lose their lives every year because of accidents. According to WHO road accidents are the 8th leading cause of deaths all around the world.
Road transport remains a major mode of transport in India both in terms of traffic share and contribution to the economy. Hence road safety has been a topic of concern for a long period of time. Some major causes of road accidents and fatalities are outlined below-
- Infrastructure related issues- lack of planned road development and the poor quality of material used in road construction makes the road conditions miserable. Moreover, roads constructed are not developed while keeping in view the topographical conditions and weather situations of the location because of which roads are more prone to damage.
- Overweight vehicles- when the roads are constructed they are built with certain carrying capacity which is often violated by the overweight vehicles and overloading. This is a major cause of damage to the roads.
- Poor planning- the unplanned urban development and poor management of roads are also a leading cause of poor road safety in India. Roads are not developed according to mathematical principles because of which the swift twists and turns in the road increase the probability of road accidents.
- Lack of awareness- people are not fully aware of the safety symbols and signs used in highways and roads.
- Poor implementation of road safety laws- in India people easily violate road safety laws like not wearing a helmet, talking on mobile phones while driving, drunk driving, driving on wrong lanes etc.
- Vehicle safety standards- usually the vehicle safety standards are also compromised in majority of the vehicles used on Indian roads. They are not properly equipped with air bags, poor condition of heavy vehicles etc. they are not only prone to more accident related deaths but are also environmentally polluting.
- Globally the decade 2021 – 2030 is declared as the Decade of Action for Road Safety by the United Nations General Assembly. In India too there are various laws which deal with road safety like National Highway authority of India Act 1998, Motor vehicles amendment Act 2019, National highways (land and traffic) act 2000, the Carriage by road act, 2007 etc.
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Various improvements were suggested for making Indian roads more safe like-
- Strict implementation of rules- with digitalisation of various records and updation, the vehicle safety checks are more transparent. For stricter implementation of road safety laws various mechanisms are used like speed detectors, e-challan, load detection etc.
- Checking quality of vehicles- more comprehensive safety standards should be implemented like advanced braking systems, effective airbags and car crash systems etc. especially for heavy vehicles to make them more safe and reliable. Moreover periodic quality assessment should be undertaken to filter out unsafe vehicles from Indian roads.
- Infrastructure development- all the national highways and expressways should have an emergency hospital facility within every 2 km. This will reduce the number of fatalities which are usually caused by delayed medical care. Roads should also be developed in a planned manner while keeping in mind the weather events and topographical conditions for ensuring sustainability.
- Spreading awareness- awareness campaigns should be organised for road signs and importance of road safety. Role of bystanders should also be emphasised for making the awareness campaign more effective.