Every passing day, road accidents keep on increasing as the population rises. The situation gets worse by the second, as people forget to follow rules while driving and lack of surveillance surely adds to the problem. Needless to say, road safety today indefinitely plays a very important role in order to stay safe.

What is road safety and why is it important?

Essentially, road safety is described as methods to assure safety on the roads by preventing accidents that are likely to take place due to negligence and human errors. At times, they can be unavoidable due to weather conditions or someone else’s fault, but in order to prevent accidents all together, road safety is the sole measure to avoid damage completely.

It is extremely important to follow traffic rules to ensure road safety as when a negligent driver ignores traffic signals and drives dangerously, apart from himself, he puts others in jeopardy as well. It’s vital to know the importance of road safety because the number of accidents that take place are one of the biggest causes of deaths that take place.

The Role of Vaghmi Foundation to improve road safety in India:

Vaghmi Foundation, registered under section 8 charitable company, has been working in the services of humanity in the last two years, and has undertaken projects with an aim to improve road safety. Here are a few of the projects:

(a)   Improving road safety in Talegaon Dabhade Chakan Road in Pune: In collaboration with Mahindra & Mahindra Vehicle Manufacturing Co. Ltd. and Safe Road Foundation, the objective of the Road Safety Programme is to help improve road safety for road users and accident reduction along with creating awareness and responsiveness of local community members and first aid measures. The project is ongoing as of now, as Vaghmi tries its best to create awareness about road safety.

(b)   Road Safety Week Awareness Campaign in 2018: In collaboration with Safe Road Foundation and Pune Traffic Police, an awareness campaign was conducted in Pune in the year 2018.

(c)   Traffic Simulator Handover: In collaboration with Tom Tom India, Safe Road Foundation and Pune Traffic Police, Vaghmi Foundation was invited to be a part of the traffic simulator being handed over to DCP traffic Mr. Rahul Shrirame. Location mapping, identification and implementation are some of the tasks which would be undertaken in this project.

Situation of road safety in India and the future:

From pedestrians and cyclists crossing the road without looking in both directions, to drivers jumping red lights, the weight of road safety falls on both ends of the coin. In India, in the year 2019 alone, road crashes killed over 1,51,000 people. Maharashtra is among the states with the highest rate of road crashes and fatalities. Pune city alone witnesses about 1500 road crashes every year, on an average, to say the least.

In the country, there are about 17 accident-related deaths every hour. Considering this, it is very important to understand the grave need to follow road safety. Here are some road safety rules that may save your life as well as others:

1)      Follow the traffic rules: First and foremost, is to follow the safety rules which include not skipping the red light, being aware of your surrounding traffic, avoid overtaking in heavy traffic areas, drive in the speed limit, wear the seatbelt/helmet and use the proper signals in the car.

2)      Watch out for pedestrians and cyclists: Most of the time, people tend to forget the high number of two-wheeler users in the country and the walking pedestrians. As they are the first ones to get hurt in an accident due to high risk of exposure, drive safely around them.

3)      Don’t drink and drive: Probably one of the most heard rules but the least followed. Do not take your life for granted and don’t put others’ lives in danger by intaking alcohol before driving.

4)      Don’t follow blindly: If you see someone disobey the traffic rule, do not follow them. Always remember the importance and relevance of rules twice before even thinking about breaking them.

As a citizen of the country, you can always spread awareness to your family members and loved ones about the importance of these road safety measures and precautions. If you are right, you cannot be proven wrong. So, raise your voice and guide others by making this country safer, happier and better. And always remember to love safety, marry rules and divorce speed. Stay safe and keep others safe.