The total number of people killed in road crashes across the globe recorded a 5% reduction in 2021 compared to 2011 – from 1.25 million to 1.19 million, as per the Global Status Report on Road Safety released by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
While the report released, there was slight overall reduction in deaths despite the global vehicle fleet more than doubling, road networks significantly expanding, and the global population rising by nearly a billion, India’s record has deteriorated as the total number of fatalities went up from 1.34 lakh in 2010 to 1.54 lakh in 2021 Moreover, India’s share in total road fatalities also increased from 11% to 13%.
The WHO, in its report compiling data from 170 member countries of the United Nations, said that the “slight decline” in road fatalities shows that efforts to improve road safety are working but fall far short of what is needed to meet the target of the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021–2030 to halve deaths by 2030.
As per the report, road traffic deaths and injuries were the “number one” reason for killer of children and youth aged 5-29 years and 12th leading cause of death when all ages are considered.
