Over-speeding causes about 70% of Fatal Road Accidents, Deaths Up from 2017 to 2023

• Pavithra K M

TL;DR India continues to witness a rise in fatal road accidents, largely driven by over-speeding, drunk driving, and wrong-side driving. Data from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways shows deaths rising from 1.48 lakh (2017) to 1.68 lakh (2023), with over-speeding accounting for nearly 70% of fatalities. States like Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh saw an increase in accidents due to such violations. In a few major cities, around 90% of accidents are linked to over-speeding, underscoring gaps in enforcement and road safety.

Context:
Recent news reports highlight the growing concern over road accidents across India, arising from a combination of factors such as traffic rule violations, driver fatigue, poor road conditions, and vehicle defects. The recent Kurnool bus fire in Andhra Pradesh, which resulted in around 20 fatalities following a high-speed collision and drunk driving, underscores the serious consequences of such incidents. This analysis examines the trends in road accidents across India, with a focus on cases linked to traffic rule violations and their impact on public safety.

Who compiles this data?
Road accident data in India is compiled by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH). It collects data annually from the Police Departments of all States and Union Territories and publishes it in its annual report, “Road Accidents in India,” which presents details for each calendar year.

Where can I download clean & structured data on Road Accidents in India?
A clean, structured, and ready-to-use dataset on road accidents caused by different traffic violations is available for download on Dataful. A collection of datasets on year-, state-, and city-wise details on road accidents, injuries, and deaths in India, categorised by factors such as gender, age, road type, vehicle type, and cause such as over-speeding, signal jumping, wrong-side driving, along with data on accident locations and blackspots, is also available on Dataful.

Key Insights

• Over-speeding continues to account for a dominant share of fatal road accidents, with deaths rising from 98,613 in 2017 to 1.17 lakh in 2023, registering a nearly 20% increase over six years. On average, 13 people died every hour in 2023 due to over-speeding. Barring a dip during the pandemic, the numbers have increased again.
• Between 2018 and 2023, accidents caused by drunken driving fell by nearly 25%, yet deaths dropped by only 12%, indicating that such crashes are becoming deadlier. Similarly, wrong-side driving deaths rose from 8,764 to 9,432 during the same period, even as accident numbers stayed almost unchanged.

• Over-speeding accidents show mixed trends across states. Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh recorded an increase of over 11%, while Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu reported a decline of around 15% between 2017 and 2023.
• Violations like drunken driving and wrong-side driving are on the rise in states such as Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, and Telangana.

• Across the years, over-speeding accounted for around 90% of accidents in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Mumbai.
• Unlike other cities, Allahabad reports a significant share across all major violation types.
• In Kolkata, the ‘Others’ category consistently accounts for over 90% of all reported accidents, meaning most incidents are attributed to unspecified causes.

Why does it matter?
Road accidents remain one of India’s leading causes of preventable deaths, claiming over 1.6 lakh lives each year. The growing share of accidents linked to traffic violations such as over-speeding, drunken driving, and wrong-side driving underscores gaps in enforcement and driver awareness. These incidents not only impose a heavy social and economic cost but also highlight the urgent need for improved road design, stricter compliance, and public education to curb reckless behaviour.

Key Numbers

• Road accident deaths: 1.48 lakh (2017) → 1.68 lakh (2023)
• Share of over-speeding in total accidents: ~67% (2017) → ~70% (2023)
• Deaths due to over-speeding: ↑ 19% — 98,613 (2017) → 1.17 lakh (2023)
• Deaths from drunken driving: ↓ 12% — 4,188 (2018) → 3,674 (2023)
• Deaths from wrong-side driving: ↑ 8% — 8,764 (2018) → 9,432 (2023)
• Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Mumbai: ~90% of all accidents were linked to over-speeding