The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has released a public report for the year 2022 regarding road accidents. According to this report, Chandigarh ranks 30th in road accidents across the country, while it was at the 31st position in 2021. Road accidents in Chandigarh are consistently increasing.
On the other hand, there is a silver lining in that the number of fatalities in road accidents in 2022 has decreased compared to 2021. Looking at these figures, there has been a 13.9% increase in road accidents in the city compared to previous years. In 2021, there were 208 accidents, while in 2022, there were 237 accidents. In 2020, the city’s police stations recorded a total of 159 accidents.
These statistics reveal that in comparison to 2021, there was a decrease in the number of fatalities in road accidents in 2022. In 2021, 96 people lost their lives in accidents, whereas in 2022, this number was 83. In 2020, 53 people lost their lives in road accidents.
In 2022, Jammu and Kashmir had the highest number of accidents, with 6,092 accidents. Delhi follows closely with 5,652 accidents. Additionally, there were 1,181 accidents in Puducherry, and 374 accidents in Ladakh. Central and union territories account for only 1.5% of accidents across the country. In Delhi, the highest number of fatalities occurred in 2022, with 1,461 people losing their lives, while in Chandigarh, where 172 people were injured in accidents in 2021, 203 people were injured in 2022.Accidents involving two-wheelers are the most common in cities with a population of over ten lakhs, accounting for 42.9% of road accidents. Meanwhile, accidents involving pedestrians accounted for 19.6%. Additionally, accidents involving cars, vans, and jeeps accounted for 16.6%, while auto-rickshaw-related accidents accounted for 5.6%. The report also highlights that driving at high speeds is a significant violation of traffic rules and contributes to accidents. In cities with a population of over ten lakhs, there were 51,864 accidents due to high-speed driving in the previous year. Among these, 11,190 people lost their lives, and 45,776 people were injured.The report also points out that irregularities resulting from road potholes, construction, or repair work are some of the causes of accidents. In cities with a population of over ten lakhs, 4.4% of road accidents are caused by road and bridge construction/repair work, while 6.8% are due to fatalities, and 4% are due to injuries. In 2022, road potholes accounted for 0.8% of accidents, 1.2% of fatalities, and 0.7% of injuries.
