Road accident deaths

Road accidents are a major public health concern in India, with over 450,000 reported accidents responsible for over 150,000 deaths in 2022.^[1]

However, it is likely that official statistics miss the full extent of mortality from road accidents; India's Sample Registration System surveys over eight million households to estimate causes of death using verbal autopsies (see a full explanation here). In 2019, the SRS estimated 330,100 road accident fatalities. This is more than double the number of road accident deaths reported by the Indian police for the same year. (For a full discussion of data sources on road accident fatalities, read this piece in our Measurement section.)

India in global context

Even by official recorded numbers, India reports the highest number of road accident deaths of any country in the world^[2] and accounts for 11% of the world's road accidents^[3].

Proportionate to its population, however, India has a lower mortality rate from road accidents than the global average. While India's road fatalities per 100,000 population are lower than the global average, they exceed those of neighbouring countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh.^[4]

Road accidents are a leading cause of mortality in India. 36 out of every 1,000 deaths in India in 2019 were attributed to road accidents.^[5] Among young men (aged 15-29) in particular, road accidents are the single largest cause of death, responsible for one in four deaths.

Change over time

Over time, the number of road accident fatalities relative to India's population has been steadily rising.

However, relative to the number of vehicles in India, fatalities have been on the decline.^[6]

Fatalities by road users

Two-wheeler riders account for the highest number of fatalities in road accidents in India, followed by pedestrians. Nearly half of all deaths in road accidents are of people on two-wheelers.^[7]

Two-wheelers are also the leading cause of traffic accidents, followed by cars and trucks.

Geographic distribution

Six states were responsible for over half of all the road accident fatalities in 2022 - Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Karnataka. However, proportionate to their populations, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Chhattisgarh have the highest accident rates.

In Bihar and West Bengal, more than half of the road accident deaths involved pedestrians. Meanwhile, in Goa, Chhattisgarh, and Tamil Nadu, over half of road accident deaths involve two-wheelers.

Urban versus rural disparities

Approximately six out of ten road accidents occur in rural areas, and these regions account for seven out of ten fatalities. Since 2014, the number of fatalities in rural areas has been steadily rising, whereas urban areas have shown relatively stable numbers.

Causes of road accidents

Traffic violations were associated with a majority of road accident fatalities in India.^[8] The leading cause was overspeeding, involved in 7 out of every 10 fatalities. Other common violations included drunken driving or drug consumption, driving on the wrong side, jumping red lights, and using mobile phones while driving.

In about 50,000 of the 75,000 fatalities involving two-wheelers, the victims were not wearing helmets.

Tamil Nadu records one of the highest shares of two-wheeler fatalities in India, accounting for 15% of all such deaths nationwide. The state also leads in fatalities involving the non-use of helmets. Of approximately 11,000 two-wheeler road accident fatalities in Tamil Nadu, over 7,500 involved individuals - both riders and passengers - who were not wearing helmets.

Similarly, in 2022, there were approximately 21,000 four-wheeler accident deaths reported, and around 17,000 of these fatalities involved individuals who were not wearing seat belts.

[1] Road Accidents in India, 2022 (Ministry of Road Transport and Highways). The MoRTH collects accident data from state police departments using standardised formats developed under international guidelines.

[2] World Road Statistics 2022, cited in Road Accidents in India, 2022 (MoRTH).

[3] World Bank

[4] World Bank Development Indicators. This data used modeling to estimate global road traffic injuries and fatalities based on data from different sources.

[5] Causes of Death (2017-19), Sample Registration System, Registrar General of India.

[6] The number of vehicles in India has been steadily rising.

[7] There are around 260 million two-wheelers and 50 million cars registered in India

[8] Traffic violations and use of helmets and seat-belts are typically documented by local traffic police at the accident site, where officers assess the situation, collect evidence, and record the details of infractions from a predefined list of categories. However these cannot be directly attributed as the cause of the accident