Rising to the challenge: The quest to save over one million Indian lives in the next decade And all this in a country that succeeded at the first a empt – where others have failed – to send an opera onal mission to Mars. At the current rate, road accidents will kill 3.21 million Indians by 2030 . The human and societal cost is catastrophic, and as such Shri Ni n Gadkari’s vision for a safer India must be embraced head-on and with urgency.
THE CAUSE
Michael Hirsh Regional Director for India Mobileye Vision Technologies Ltd. He heads Mobileye’s opera ons in India and is based at the company’s Corporate and R&D Headquarters in Jerusalem, Israel. His current focus is on establishing the infrastructure necessary to support Mobileye’s Collision Avoidance Technology & Black Spot Mapping throughout India. Michael holds an MBA in Technology Management from Tel Aviv University.
THE NEED 50% in the next 5 years – This is the bold direc ve issued by Honourable Transport Minister Shri Ni n Gadkari for reduc on in accidents on Indian roads. Road accidents are now seen as a global epidemic, par cularly so in India where almost 5 lakh crashes occurred in 2014, taking 1.46 lakh lives, and leaving three mes that number of people, in addi on to the deceased individuals’ family, affected by the debilita ng burden of injury. The human and financial toll impact is immense. 400 deaths take place every day on Indian roads, a rate with an annual increase of 4.6%. This represents, on average, a loss of 17 lives every hour, and a cost to the economy of 3% in GDP. PG.10 | Smart Automo ve | Jul - Aug 2017
Driver error has been revealed as the single biggest cause of road accidents in India, accoun ng for some 78% of cases. This tallies with findings worldwide, showing that more than 90% of collisions are caused by human error. Typically, it is driver ina en on in the crucial 2-3 seconds prior to an imminent accident, and the driver’s consequent failure to take correc ve ac on, that leads to accidents. Further research has shown that a mere 1.5 seconds’ early warning could prevent 90% of forward collisions, and that 2 seconds’ warning could prevent nearly all forward collisions. Moreover, distracted driving is on the rise. Nobody gets into a car with the inten on of having an accident, but the causes of ina en on – whether they be busier daily schedules, mobile phones or simply more traffic – are many, and more distrac ng than ever. For example, bus drivers in busy urban environments are expected to keep their eyes on the road, all while managing passengers’ boarding and disembarking, receiving payment and maintaining the route schedule – o en in dangerous road condi ons or in challenging weather. Equally so, long-haul truck drivers, who are figh ng a constant ba le to meet delivery schedules and navigate difficult roads, are o en distracted and fa gued. Complica ng such already dangerous situa ons further, is the growing phenomenon of distracted pedestrians
– those looking down at their mobile phones or unable to hear properly due to headphones, while walking in and around traffic.
“…road accidents cause a loss of 17 lives on an average every hour, and a cost to the economy of 3% in GDP” THE SOLUTION We are all aware of, and excited by the promise of, autonomous driving. As selfdriving vehicles become a reality, we can look forward to a dras c reduc on in accidents, and hopefully even an eventual end to this scourge forever. But, if predic ons are correct, we will need to wait un l the next decade for autonomous driving to enter even the first stages of commercial availability. The task is enormous, requiring a joint effort by developers, car manufacturers, lawmakers, regulatory agencies, planners and providers of na onal and urban road infrastructure, and more.
Driver error has been revealed as the single biggest cause of road accidents in India, accoun ng for some 78% of cases. However, the good news is that the technology leading the autonomous driving revolu on is already available to help combat road accidents and to iden fy accident-causing infrastructure deficiencies, right now, today. Retrofi ed Collision Avoidance Technology is available for almost any vehicle today.
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