Wrong-side driving steers road fatalities
Between 1,500 and 2,000 are killed due to wrong-side driving every year in Delhi. Between 2017 and 2021, nearly 43,000 people were killed due to wrong-side driving across the country, with authorities struggling to rein in the practice
Road Safety
EXPERTS SAY THAT DESIGN CHANGES WILL NOT HELP CURB THE PRACTICE AS IT’S CULTURAL. THEY SAID STRICT ENFORCEMENT IS THE ONLY WAY TO END THE MENACE
NEW DELHI: On July 11 last year, a private bus cruised confidently down the wrong side of the Meerut Expressway. It barrelled down the expressway’s wide corridors, in the face of onrushing traffic, for seven kilometres without reproach. The driver’s flagrant journey came to an abrupt halt near Ghaziabad, when it rammed into an SUV that was headed towards Rajasthan, killing six of its occupants and critically wounding the other two.
Around the same time, on the opposite margin of the National Capital Region (NCR), a woman was killed and five others were injured when a car driving on the wrong side of the Dwarka Expressway rammed into their vehicle.
In another incident in October last year, a person riding a motorcycle died after being hit by a scooter coming from the wrong side in Mayur Vihar. The victim was thrown towards the median and was hit again by a bus, in the late night incident. Both vehicles that hit the rider fled the scene.
Between 2017 and 2021, nearly 43,000 people were killed due to wrong-side driving – a scourge that accounts for the second-most fatalities of all accidents on Indian roads, and one that authorities have struggled to snuff out.
The problem is just as acute in Delhi. According to the city’s traffic police force, between 1,500 and 2,000 are killed due to wrong-side driving every year. This, despite the number of penalties for the violation increasing every year. In 2022, the Delhi traffic police issued 43,705 fines to wrong-side drivers. This jumped to 59,573 in 2023 and the force has already issued 24,887 fines this year.
At the heart of the problem, said experts and police officers, is a blatant disregard of the law, of public safety norms and the nearabsence of the fear of prosecution.
The Delhi traffic police said most such cases have been reported from Gokulpuri, Shahdara, Khajuri, Dwarka, Vasant Kunj, Kalyanpuri, Kamla Market, Paharganj, Preet Vihar and Badarpur, adding that apart from these areas, e-rickshaws near most Metro stations also drive down the wrong side.
And when not fatal, traffic is a major civic nuisance.
Take Kashmere Gate, for instance – one of the busiest stretches in the city, with an interconnected metro station and a bus terminus that is victim to constant traffic congestion, largely due to e-rickshaws and auto-rickshaws snaking down the wrong side.
Several commuters are desperate to take shortcuts and it doesn’t matter if the roads are broad, or narrow, or arterial stretches, said a traffic police officer who asked not to be named.
“A traffic police officer cannot be present at all places and people obviously take advantage of it. Officials on duty try their best to prosecute, but violators often flee,” said the officer, adding that such violators not only endanger their own lives but lives of pedestrians and others driving on the right side of the road.
Stretching far and wide
Uma Devi (43), a resident of Subhash Nagar in west Delhi fractured her right leg in May last year when she was hit by a scooter that rammed into her while driving down the wrong end of the street.
“Walking on these roads is scary… you are obviously not expecting people to travel down the wrong side and hit you. The only solution is stricter enforcement and heavy fines,” she said.
Section 184 of the Motor Vehicles Act pertains to dangerous driving, including wrong-side driving and provides for a ₹5,000 fine for the first offence and ₹10,000 for a repeat offence. Police can also impound the vehicle if they deem fit.
Indeed, Delhi traffic police data shows that “dangerous driving” (a provision that includes driving against the direction of traffic) flow was the second-most common traffic rule violated, after helmet-less riding.
Delhi’s special commissioner of police (traffic) HGS Dhaliwal said wrong-way driving is one of the most common triggers for traffic jams and accidents, despite several interventions.
“To tackle this menace, the Delhi traffic police have taken several measures like increasing their presence on the roads to penalise wrong-side drivers, including imposing penalties on violators. We have also launched several campaigns about the dangers of wrong-side driving and the penalty it can attract,” he said.
The officer said that they have also installed barricades at important points as well as prominent signages indicating “No Entry” or “One Way” to deter drivers from entering roads from the wrong side.
He also said the traffic police has partnered with other stakeholders to identify areas prone to wrong-side driving and implemented targeted measures to combat this issue.
The possible solutions
Addressing the menace requires a multifaceted approach that combines robust enforcement measures with long-term infrastructure improvements and public awareness campaigns, said experts.
“Wrong-side driving is a cultural issue. When someone sees a shortcut that saves time, they take it, even if it’s against the law, without thinking of the consequences. This is a traffic problem that cannot just be resolved by design changes. It needs strict and consistent enforcement at various levels,” said S Velmurugan, chief scientist and head of traffic engineering and safety division of Central Road Research Institute (CRRI).
In addition to punitive measures, he suggested investing in technology-driven solutions to enhance traffic management and enforcement capabilities. Automated surveillance systems, including CCTV cameras and traffic monitoring sensors, should be deployed to identify and deter wrong side driving, he added.
“It need not be a major expenditure. There are already surveillance cameras at multiple locations in Delhi. At about 150 places, there are also cameras that are used for traffic penalties. There are off-the-shelf IT solutions available that the enforcement agencies can use to increase penalties. Additionally, the Lok Adalats that usually waive off many of the traffic challans, should not give any relief in case of offences such as wrong side driving,” said Velmurugan.
Experts add that efforts should also be made to improve road infrastructure and signage, by installing barricades, bollards or lane dividers to physically deter motorists from driving against the designated traffic flow.
“Violation of any traffic rule constitutes human error or driver’s fault. However, from the perspective of road safety strategy, violations such as over speeding and driving on the wrong side do not constitute human error alone but it may be due to lack of education and enforcement. Moreover, the possible fault in road design may also be the reason of traffic rule violation, which opens the scope for road engineering measures to address problems which are prima facie, considered to be human error,” said MORTH’S road accident report.
According to Velmurugan, some of the limited design interventions that can be made in Delhi to reduce driving on the wrong side, includes junction improvement at the major junctions by reducing their size and making them compact.
Other experts suggest adopting a “Safe Systems Approach” while designing roads and streets. This principle recognizes that humans will make mistakes, but crashes should not result in death or serious injuries.
“The Safe Systems Approach hinges on the principle of shared responsibility. Safety is not the responsibility of those using the infrastructure alone but also of those involved in the design and engineering, policymakers, and law enforcement officials. By adopting this approach, countries like Sweden have reduced road crashes by 55% in two decades. It is also estimated that one million deaths could be avoided annually if countries adopt this approach,” said Pawan Mulukutla, Executive Program Director - Integrated Transport, Clean Air and Hydrogen at WRI India.