Between 2019 and 2023, India recorded nearly 8 lakh road crash deaths, with pedestrians accounting for 1.5 lakh or 20 percent of the fatalities, according to new data.
The India Status Report on Road Safety, released by the Transportation Research and Injury Prevention Centre and IIT-Delhi, highlights low compliance by states in providing footpaths, despite the constitutional right under Article 21 guaranteeing pedestrian access.
Audit reveals gaps in footpath construction
An audit, ordered by a Supreme Court panel and conducted in 24 states, found footpath availability on roads ranging from 19 percent to 73 percent, with Maharashtra leading in coverage, The Times of India reported.
The audit, which covered four cities in each state, assessed whether footpaths met the Indian Road Congress (IRC) norms on availability, width, and height. In Union Territories like Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry, just 3 percent and 5 percent of roads had footpaths respectively.
In Bihar and Haryana, only 19 percent to 20 percent of roads included them. Even where footpaths existed, most did not comply with IRC specifications, the report added.
In a recent order, the Supreme Court stated, “It is necessary to have proper footpaths for citizens. They should be such that they should be accessible for persons with disabilities and removal of encroachments is mandatory. This court has recognised that the right of pedestrians to use footpaths is guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.”
Globally, pedestrians account for 21 percent of road fatalities. In India, walkers made up nearly one-fifth of road crash deaths in 2023, according to World Health Organisation data.
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