Road Safety is a multi-sectoral and multi-dimensional issue. It incorporates the development and management of road infrastructure, provision of safer vehicles, legislation and law enforcement, mobility planning, provision of health and hospital services, child safety, urban land use planning etc.
Road safety is a shared, multi-sectoral, responsibility of the government and a range of civil society stakeholders. The success of road safety strategies in all countries depends upon a broad base of support and common action from all stakeholders.
With massive investment in roads and the exponential growth in the number of vehicles it has become necessary to have a system, which integrates all disciplines that influence road safety and which at the same time would have linkages with established institutions that cater to the different aspects of road safety viz. engineering, education, enforcement, medical and behavioral sciences.
As India emerges as a hub for manufacturing and car ownership, the number of deaths on the country’s roads increases every year. Last year almost one hundred thousand people lost their lives on the country’s highways and city roads, making road deaths one of the leading causes of non-natural death in India. Infact, on a global scale, India is only second to China in accidental automobile related deaths.
Effective media coverage can humanise and localise the issue, and spur public discourse, which, in turn, will promote the government to prioritize road safety issues into the country’s social and political agenda. Media content shapes beliefs about the safety and influences response from governments and public attitude towards the road sense etc. It can advocate accountability and responsibility.
With the above sobering figures in mind, Outlook is taking special initiative on promoting awareness on Road Safety issues.
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