Motor Vehicle & Road Safety Statistics
Motor Vehicle & Road Safety Statistics 2021-22
As on March 2022, there are 155.65 lakh motor vehicles registered in the State marking a growth of 4.83 per cent over the previous year. The number of vehicles per 1,000 population for Kerala as on March, 2022 is 466. The number of motor vehicles having valid registrations as on March, 2022 is 1,55,65,149 as against 1,48,47,163 in the previous year. As of March, 2022, the total number of two wheelers (Motor Cycles/Scooters/Mopeds) registered in the State is 1,01,51,286 and there are 7,09,289 Auto rickshaws and 32,58,312 cars in the State. There are 77,649 contract carriages (including Omni bus) and 49,791 stage carriages are registered in the State as of March, 2022 The number of newly registered vehicles in 2021-22 is 7,17,986 (6,62,979 in 2020-21).The growth in the number of motor vehicles in the last ten years since 2013 is shown below:
Growth in number of Motor Vehicles, since 2013
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Source: Motor Vehicles Department
The highest vehicle population was recorded in Ernakulam District with 22,16,348 vehicles (14.25 per cent) followed by Thiruvananthapuram with 19,34,013 (12.44 per cent). Wayanad District has the lowest number of 2,59,676 vehicles (1.67 per cent). The mismatch between growth in motor vehicles and the capacity augmentation of roads has resulted in increasing traffic congestion and road accidents throughout Kerala. Percentage of motor vehicles registered in the State in 2021-22 is given below:
Distribution of Motor Vehicles Registered by type, 2021 to 22, in per cent
Source: Motor Vehicles Department
Road Accident 2021-22
The major road network of Kerala, though well connected, faces severe constraints because of the urban sprawl and haphazard ribbon development all along the routes. The existing traffic levels at most stretches are excessive and beyond road capacity. Capacity augmentation of existing roads is beset with problems relating to limited right of way and land acquisition.
According to State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB), 3,429 deaths and 36,775 injuries (of which 26,495 are grievous injuries requiring hospitalisation) were reported in Kerala in 2021 from 33,296 road accidents. Thiruvananthapuram District reported the maximum number of fatalities (410) in 2021 whereas Wayanad reported the least number of fatalities (53) in 2021. As per the records of the SCRB, 2,848 deaths were reported in the State from 28,695 motor vehicle accidents during January to August, 2022. Majority of road accidents are by two wheelers that constitute 38 per cent of accidents in the State in from January to August, 2022. The increase of road accidents involving two wheeler is on increase and is alarming despite implementation of various road safety measures by various departments. The number of traffic crashes involving two wheelers was 13,624 (37 per day) in 2021 and it is 10,840 from January to August, 2022 (Approximately 44 accidents per day). The percentage of vehicle category-wise accidents occurred between January and August, 2022 in Kerala is shown in below:
Details of road accident by vehicle type in Kerala, January to August, 2022, in per cent
A total of 2,045 bus accidents were registered in the State in 2021. Out of this, KSRTC buses involved in 328 accidents from January to August, 2022 and other buses in 1,717 accidents. Trend of motor vehicle accidents reported in Kerala over a period from 2010-2022 is presented below:
Trend in Motor Vehicle Accidents in Kerala, 2010 to 2022*, in thousands
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*Details as on August, 2022(Jan-August, 2022)
Source: State Crime Records Bureau
The trend of motor vehicle accidents in the State from 2010 to August, 2022 reveals that the number of accidents in the State remained almost stable during the period and it rose in 2019 and declined sharply in the year 2020 and it again increased in 2021.The accidents per lakh vehicles registered in the State were 289 in 2019. Though the rate of accidents in the State has reduced to 188 in 2020, it again increased to 214 in 2021. The motor vehicles department has registered 5,12,009 cases of violation of motor vehicle rules including over speeding and red light violation in the financial year 2021-22 and an amount of ₹42,58,37,658 was collected as penalty for the violation of motor vehicle/road rules during the period.
It is to be highlighted that there is a constant decrease in accidents per lakh vehicles every year since 2011. The improvements made in roads have played a pivotal role in reducing the number of accidents over years. Most of the accidents are attributable to the fault of drivers as per records available with traffic police. However, deficiencies in road design also affect motor vehicles, a fact generally overlooked as bad road conditions. Road safety training for various categories of road users, rectification in road design, deficiencies in inclusion of road safety aspects in the planning and operation stages of road construction are the primary facts to be taken up for reducing accidents.
Black spots in the State
Black Spots are the short stretches where the crashes/fatalities take place repeatedly, gets created on the road network due to various reasons. The NHAI has defined hazardous locations based on Accidents Severity Index (ASI) and Black spots as Hazardous spots with Accidents Severity Index (ASI) more than threshold value (Average Severity + 1.5 x Standard Deviation). The categorisation of black spots has been made on the basis of fatality and frequency of accidents in black spots namely black spots coming under class I category is more prone for accident and fatality and the same will be lower in class III black spots.
A total of 374 priority crash black spots are identified and prioritised based on the severity of the crashes occurring at crash black spots in the State. ‘Priority crash blackspots’ were further classified into Priority I black spots (250 locations) and Priority II black spots (124 locations). A total of 227 priority black spots were identified on National Highways in Kerala followed by 84 on State Highways and 63 on Other Roads.
Motor Vehicle & Road Safety Statistics 2006-2021
Source:
* Economic Review 2010-2022
* Motor Vehicle Department
* Department of Economics and Statistics, Kerala