The Delhi government on Monday launched a ‘Zero Fatality Corridor’ (ZFC) to reduce road crashes, and scientifically assess the cause of such accidents on the stretch between Burari Chowk and Bhalswa Chowk.
It launched the pilot project with the SaveLIFE Foundation, a leading road safety NGO. The project will also undertake “necessary interventions” to reduce crashes on the stretch.
“As part of its initiative to reduce road crash deaths, the government has partnered with SaveLIFE Foundation, to adopt the Burari to Bhalswa stretch as a pilot project with plans to replicate the model in other parts of the city. The activity is in line with the Delhi government’s plan of action to reduce fatalities due to road crashes by 30% by 2020,” the statement said.
Over 1,000 killed in 2018
Delhi Traffic Police data show that 1,690 people were killed and 6,086 were injured in 6,515 road crashes in 2018.
The 3-km-stretch on the Outer Ring Road has been chosen for the ZFC, contains four black spots — Burari Chowk, Bhalswa Chowk, Jahangirpuri bus stand and Mukundpur Chowk — which witnessed 67 deaths in 2016-2017, the government said.
“As we mark the 30th Road Safety Week, we have released the first-ever Annual Action Plan that provides a blueprint to reduce road crash deaths in Delhi. The Capital has witnessed 1,691 road crash fatalities last year. Our government is adopting a new approach to tackle this pandemic. Through the ZFC pilot project, we aim to reduce the fatalities to near zero levels on this particular stretch. After evaluating the impact of the initiative, we will replicate the model in other parts of the city,” said Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot.
The Annual Action Plan on road safety, which is mandatory under Delhi’s first Road Safety Policy released in 2018, binds all government agencies including Transport, PWD, Health and Education and the Delhi Traffic Police to a year-round set of actions.
As part of the project, SaveLIFE Foundation will conduct a scientific crash investigation to study the reasons leading to road injuries and deaths.
Counter-measures
Based on the causal factors identified, it will recommend counter-measures for Delhi government and Delhi Police to implement to make the corridor fatality-free, the statement said.
‘Replicable partnership’
Commenting on the development, SaveLIFE Foundation founder and CEO Piyush Tewari said, “Delhi government is demonstrating exemplary leadership and political will to make Delhi’s roads safe for all. Our partnership, in addition to reducing road crash deaths, aims to create a replicable partnership model for government and non-government organisations to collaborate on key issues affecting citizens in our country.”