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Sixty-six percent of <keyword id="23012810" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="road-traffic-deaths" source="keywords">road traffic deaths</keyword> in <keyword id="19952305" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Southeast-Asia" source="keywords">Southeast Asia</keyword> are of <keyword id="20239488" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pedestrians" source="keywords">pedestrians</keyword>, motorized <keyword id="20937113" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="two-wheeler-riders" source="keywords">two-wheeler riders</keyword>, and <keyword id="20007750" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="cyclists" source="keywords">cyclists</keyword>, while the highest traffic fatalities in India are among two- and three-wheeler riders, according to the latest <keyword id="20738786" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="WHO-report" source="keywords">WHO report</keyword>. The "WHO South-East Asia Regional Status Report on <keyword id="20187029" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="road-safety" source="keywords">Road Safety</keyword>" was launched during "Safety 2024", the 15th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion, 2024. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), globally, 30% of reported road traffic deaths involved users of powered two- and three-wheelers. Occupants of four-wheeled vehicles make up 25% of the deaths and pedestrians account for 21 %. Cyclists represent 5% of the deaths. The remaining 20% include occupants of large vehicles, heavy goods vehicles, and other or unknown user types. "In the WHO Southeast Asia Region, the share of reported road traffic deaths is 46% for users of powered two- and three-wheelers, 12 for occupants of four-wheeled vehicles, 17% for pedestrians, 3% for cyclists and 22% for others. In all these countries, vulnerable road users (pedestrians, motorised two-wheeler users and bicyclists) constitute 66% of the total reported road traffic deaths," the report said. "Drivers or riders of two and three-wheelers constitute the highest proportion among all road user categories in India (45.1%), Maldives (100 %), Myanmar (47%) and Thailand (51.4%)," it added. The WHO noted that no country in the South Asian region had achieved the target of reducing its estimated road traffic deaths by 50 %. However, considerable reduction in the WHO's estimated road traffic deaths occurred in the Maldives and Thailand, where estimated road traffic deaths decreased by 46.2% and 41.7 %, respectively. On the contrary, reported road traffic deaths in the region increased by 15 % in the 2010-2021 period. At the country level, no member state of the Southeast Asia Region with more than 10 million population has reported a decrease in road traffic deaths during this period. "However, it should be noted that the reported number of road traffic deaths in Thailand reduced by 22.9% between 2016 and 2021. The estimated road traffic deaths too increased in Bangladesh, India and Nepal during the period 2010-2021 by 23 %, 2% and 25%, respectively," the report said. Etienne Krug, director of the WHO's Department for Social Determinants of Health, said road traffic crashes were a major crisis of the 21st century. "...a large proportion of people who die in road crashes are those who cannot afford to buy a car. This is urgent time to take action. The report reveals that the crisis is huge but we need to understand and act with determination that prevention is possible and needs strict enforcement," he said. The three-day conference is being hosted by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi; George Institute for Global Health in collaboration with the All India Institute for Medical Sciences (AIIMS), National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) and co-sponsored by WHO. "To reduce inequities, we must acknowledge that injuries disproportionately impact vulnerable communities -- because we are far behind in addressing real problems with real solutions. Lived experience shows how policy shapes differential exposure, risk, and outcomes, underscoring the urgent need for change," said Jagnoor Jagnoor, head of injury division at George Institute for Global Health. During the conference, the international experts are uniting with a shared goal of "building a safer future for all: Equitable and sustainable strategies for injury and violence prevention". The conference will focus on five key themes -- improving coordination and collaboration among stakeholders, strengthening capacity for research and practice, integrating injury prevention with global health agendas such as sustainability and equity, empowering communities, and promoting informed policymaking.

Pedestrians, cyclists, two-wheeler riders constitute 66% of road fatalities in Southeast Asia, says a WHO report

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Uber and Lyft drivers in Florida saw gas shortages and obstructed roads before and after Milton.</li><li>Five drivers said these impediments prevented them from helping people and earning valuable income.</li></ul>Sergey, a Lyft driver in St. Petersburg, Florida, helped families load their suitcases into the trunk of his car before driving them to a nearby hurricane shelter on October 9. Many of his passengers were anxious about <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/family-weathered-hurricane-milton-at-disney-hotel-2024-10">Hurricane Milton's arrival</a> and racing to evacuate in the hours before it hit.Sergey completed 12 rides on October 9, according to screenshots shared with BI. He said several of his passengers faced flooding and destruction from <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hurricane-helene-milton-tampa-florida-desantis-clean-disaster-dangerous-2024-10">Hurricane Helene</a> two weeks prior and were scrambling to return to their routines. Many brought their pets with them. Some didn't know if their homes would be standing the next day.After making landfall in Florida, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hurricane-milton-landfall-florida-housing-market-insurance-fema-2024-10">Hurricane Milton</a> caused at least 14 deaths and left millions without power. In the days preceding the storm, some Uber and Lyft drivers went from transporting beachgoers to helping residents flee their communities — before eventually fleeing themselves. But after Milton passed, five drivers told BI that inaccessible roads, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hurricane-milton-evacuation-empty-gas-station-full-hotels-gridlock-traffic-2024-10">a lack of gas</a>, and a suspended ride-hailing app prevented them from helping people and earning valuable income."I drove for several hours right after the storm, and there was not a single gas station open anywhere in St. Petersburg," said Sergey, 54, who asked to use his first name for fear of professional repercussions.From his 12 rides, Sergey made $129 <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-much-uber-lyft-drivers-make-per-ride-2023-10">before expenses</a> and received one tip. His home is without power, and driving is his only source of income. However, his car only has three miles of gas left, and each day without earnings is stressful, he said.Many of his rides over the last few days were headaches — one paid $5.36 for a 16-minute ride, which he said compares to the amount he'd expect to make for a similar journey, while another was elongated because of closed exits. He rejected a 113.5-mile ride from Clearwater to Orlando because the estimated payout was $84.31 with a bonus, far less than what's standard, he said. Some rides he accepted had no people waiting at the destination.<div type="image" title="Destruction outside an apartment complex in St Petersburg, Florida after Hurricane Milton." height="1080" width="1444" msid="114169712" hostid="261" sizebytes="90492"></div>During Hurricane Milton, Uber suspended service for several hours in three Florida cities that were in the storm's direct path: Fort Myers, Sarasota, and Tampa Bay, a spokesperson told BI. They added that service has been restored in these metro areas but remains suspended along the most heavily impacted barrier islands.Additionally, the spokesperson told Business Insider the company worked closely with state officials in Florida over the past few weeks to assess the situation posed by the hurricanes and partnered with the Florida Division of Emergency Management to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.mypanhandle.com/weather/hurricane-helene/uber-offers-free-rides-to-shelters-for-floridians/">provide</a> some people with free transportation to shelters.Lyft did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment or questions regarding whether the app also suspended service during the storm.<h2 id="928e9756-39a3-4d0c-ae87-72a989030640">The evacuation process was "stressful"</h2>Drivers across the state recalled panicked passengers, fallen trees blocking roads, and lengthy gas station lines on October 10 and 11.Trent T., 50, drives independently for his own transportation company and for Uber and Lyft in South Florida. He said the tornadoes from Milton were "absolutely insane," and one of his clients' homes was destroyed. He asked to use partial anonymity for fear of professional repercussions.On October 8, Trent said he went to six gas stations before he could find one with inventory and fill up his tank. On the day of the storm, Trent drove passengers fleeing the Tampa Bay area to hotels, noticing that many stores were out of essentials like water. He said hotels in South Florida were mobbed, and he offered his house to anyone evacuating, though no one accepted.Blaine, an Uber driver based in the Tampa area, left his home after learning he was in an evacuation zone. Hotels quickly booked up across the state, but he said he secured a room in Ocala — about a two-hour drive from Tampa.However, there was a mixup with the hotel regarding the night he booked, and his reservation was void. He drove to a hotel in Savannah, Georgia, to seek shelter. The typical five-and-a-half-hour drive from Tampa took eight hours due to traffic, he said."That was stressful," the 57-year-old told BI.<h2 id="f85e7843-407a-45c1-933d-6fe7144dfaae">Drivers are eager to return to their ride-hailing gigs for necessary income</h2>Trent said he can go a few days without consistent rides and their fares but feels for drivers who live paycheck to paycheck. He said the storm could be disastrous for some drivers relying on tourism this time of year, which isn't as high as the city's peak season but still draws crowds looking for warm weather in the fall."If you were in Tampa for instance, and your rent is due this week, and now all of a sudden the storm is coming, you're five days without work," Trent said.It's why some drivers are looking to get back on the road as soon as possible.Yvonne, a part-time <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/driving-uber-lyft-women-drivers-how-make-money-gig-economy-2023-12">Uber and Lyft driver</a> in the Tampa Bay area, uses the extra income from driving to help support her two grandchildren. When the hurricane approached, she said she decided not to leave her home because it wasn't in an evacuation zone. However, the roof of her patio suffered significant damage and she lost power.She hasn't driven for Uber or Lyft since the hurricane hit. Yvonne said the roads aren't conducive to driving because many are flooded or scattered with trees or power lines. However, if the conditions change, she plans to return to her ride-hailing gig by this weekend to start earning money again.Charles P., 44, who drives part-time around Titusville — a city about 40 miles east of Orlando — said there wasn't too much damage on the roads, but he stopped driving for a few days to avoid potentially damaging his vehicle. He's seen a drop in demand and worries that tourism may decline. When he drove on Thursday, he said getting rides was very slow."I usually try to do a certain amount of money per day, but I'm probably down about half of what I normally do in three days," Charles said. "I do foresee, as things get cleaned up, that our income will probably continue to rise or get back to normal."Are you an Uber or Lyft driver in a hurricane-impacted area who's willing to share your story? Reach out to these reporters at <a target="_blank" href="mailto:jzinkula@businessinsider.com">jzinkula@businessinsider.com</a> and <a target="_blank" href="mailto:nsheidlower@businessinsider.com">nsheidlower@businessinsider.com</a>.

Flooded roads, worried passengers, and no income: Florida Uber and Lyft drivers share their experiences on the road before and after Hurricane Milton

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A French road safety group is telling people to "drive like a woman" to cut fatalities.</li><li>The campaign aims to debunk the "misogynistic" stereotype that men are better drivers than women.</li></ul>A French road safety association is urging people to "drive like a woman" to reduce the number of traffic deaths.Victimes &amp; Citoyens, a group dedicated to supporting the victims of road accidents, has <a target="_blank" href="https://www.victimes.org/conduisez-comme-une-femme.htm">launched a campaign</a> to try to debunk the "misogynistic" stereotype that men are better drivers than women.Drawing on data from <a target="_blank" href="https://www.onisr.securite-routiere.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2022-09/Obs_comportements_2021_v0.pdf">France's National Interministerial Road Safety Observatory 2022-2023</a>, the campaign noted that 84% of fatal accidents are caused by men.In 2022, according to a French government <a target="_blank" href="https://www.onisr.securite-routiere.gouv.fr/en/road-safety-performance/annual-road-safety-reports/2022-road-safety-annual-report#:~:text=Publication%20on%204th%20October%2C%202023,10.3%25%20higher%20than%20in%202021.">report</a>, 3,550 people were killed on the roads in mainland France and its overseas territories."When we look at the figures, they are clear: to stay alive behind the wheel, the best thing for men to do is adopt the same behavior as women," the campaign's website says.Victimes &amp; Citoyens also cited data showing that 88% of young drivers are killed by men, 93% of drunk drivers involved in accidents are men, and women are eight times less likely than their male counterparts to have a fatal accident on the road."Statistically, driving like a woman means only one thing — staying alive," the group said on its website.The awareness campaign will run across print, digital, and metro platforms, and will also use a chatbot to respond to posts on X about women driving. according to the campaign's website.In the US, according to the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.iihs.org/topics/fatality-statistics/detail/males-and-females#trends">Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, </a>the number of male crash deaths was more than twice the number of female crash deaths for almost every year between 1975 to 2021.The institute said this could be attributed to men typically driving more miles than women but also being more likely to engage in risky driving practices, such as speeding, not wearing seatbelts, and driving under the influence of alcohol.Historically, men have faced higher insurance premiums, as insurance companies see them as a greater risk, <a target="_blank" href="https://finance.yahoo.com/personal-finance/which-gender-pays-more-car-insurance-185411405.html">according to Yahoo! Finance</a>.

French people are being told to 'drive like a woman' to reduce traffic deaths

Have you ever considered that your regular commute to and fro work could potentially shave off some years from your life? And no, we’re not talking about road traffic accidents but the slow poison we’re inhaling unbeknownst to us: air pollutants. A new study published in <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(24)00114-1/fulltext">The Lancet Planetary Health</a> by an international team of researchers reveals a terrifying truth: over 7% of daily deaths in 10 major <keyword id="20026638" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-cities" source="keywords">Indian cities</keyword> are attributed to <keyword id="19900550" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="air-pollution" source="keywords">air pollution</keyword> caused by <keyword id="22110704" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="PM2-5-pollutants" source="keywords">PM2.5 pollutants</keyword> exceeding the World Health Organization's (WHO) safe limits. These PM2.5 pollutants are microscopic particles, 2.5 micrometres or less in diameter, that come from <keyword id="2839914" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="vehicle-emissions" source="Orion">vehicle emissions</keyword> and industrial activities. Imagine tiny daggers — that's what these PM2.5 particles are like, infiltrating deep into lungs and even the bloodstream, wreaking havoc on our health. The study found that PM2.5 levels breach WHO guidelines a staggering 99.8% of the time in these cities. The analysis covered major cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, Shimla and Varanasi. A staggering 7.2% of deaths in these cities, translating to roughly 33,000 annually, were associated with short-term PM2.5 levels exceeding the WHO's recommended limit (15 micrograms per cubic metre) between 2008 and 2019. Delhi, unfortunately, takes the crown for the most polluted. A shocking 11.5% of its annual deaths are attributed to air pollution, translating to a devastating 12,000 lives lost each year. The link between PM2.5 and mortality is undeniable. Researchers found that a mere 10 microgram per cubic metre increase in these pollutants correlates with a 1.4% rise in daily deaths. This risk factor doubles when considering only levels below India's air quality standards, which are, worryingly, less strict than the WHO's recommendations. But here's a surprising twist: the association between PM2.5 and death is even stronger in cities with generally cleaner air, like Bengaluru and Chennai. This suggests that locally produced pollutants, from sources like construction dust or waste burning, might be significant contributors. There is a glimmer of hope, however. The study emphasises that implementing stricter air quality standards and utilising proven pollution control methods from other parts of the world can be game changers. Lowering and enforcing stricter air quality limits will save tens of thousands of lives per year, emphasises Joel Schwartz, a co-author from Harvard University. This study serves as a stark wake-up call. The air we breathe in many Indian cities is a gamble, with every breath potentially harmful. Taking decisive action to curb pollution is not just about a cleaner environment, it's about saving the lives of millions of Indians.

Air pollution kills thousands in Indian cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata every year: Lancet study

<ul class="summary-list"><li>While traffic deaths are way up across the country, Hoboken, New Jersey, has managed to go years without one.</li><li>The mayor and head of transportation credit a slew of road improvements and policy changes.</li></ul><a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vehicle-related-deaths-increase-car-safety-pedestrians-cyclists-2023-9">American roads have gotten a lot more dangerous</a> in recent years.Between 2019 and 2022, traffic fatalities jumped 18%, with pedestrian deaths hitting a 40-year high in 2021, according to data from the Governors Highway Safety Association. Authorities blame the increased fatalities on speeding, impaired driving, and people not wearing seatbelts.But one New Jersey city is bucking the trend. In Hoboken, local leaders have invested in a concerted effort to cut road deaths — and it's working. The city hasn't had a single traffic death since January 2017, and traffic injuries have declined about 40% in that period, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-11-20/this-new-jersey-mayor-ended-traffic-deaths-with-a-vision-zero-plan?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_content=citylab&amp;utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=socialflow-organic">Bloomberg reported</a>.Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla, who was elected in 2017, started the city's Vision Zero effort in 2019. The project has an ambitious goal of eliminating all traffic deaths and injuries n the city by 2030.Hoboken has since pursued a slew of measures to calm traffic, and design roads and intersections to promote safety, while encouraging residents to bike, walk, or take public transit.Hoboken lowered its speed limit to 20 mph citywide in 2022. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propublica.org/article/unsafe-at-many-speeds">Research has found</a> that the speed a vehicle is traveling at when it hits a pedestrian has a significant impact on how deadly the accident is. While a pedestrian who's hit by a car traveling at 20 mph has a 93% rate of survival, the survival rate drops to 80% when the vehicle is going 30 mph. Both death and injury rates continue to rise as speeds climb above 30 mph.The city has also installed new crosswalks, bike lanes, and curb extensions, which prevent cars from parking or turning right next to the corners of sidewalks at intersections. Known as "daylighting," these curb extensions provide more visibility to pedestrians and drivers at crosswalks.Bhalla introduced Citi Bike — the popular bike-sharing program — in 2021, and Hoboken now has bike lanes on almost half of its streets.The idea behind Hoboken's Vision Zero is to make its streets less car-focused, and more welcoming and accessible to all kinds of transport, Bhalla told Bloomberg CityLab.The improvements start out simple — sometimes all that's required is a little sidewalk paint, he said. Sturdier and more expensive road alterations come later."Just with a bucket of paint, you can actually create a curb extension; you can create high visibility crosswalks, which create a much safer environment at a very cheap cost," Bhalla said. "And then when you do the next iteration of repaving, you can really amplify and increase on those improvements that you've made."Hoboken began by piloting these changes and then polled residents, who supported the movement."The goal was to make complete streets components as fundamental as a centerline or an ADA ramp," Hoboken's director of transportation and parking, Ryan Sharp, <a target="_blank" href="https://bikeportland.org/2023/04/26/hoboken-leader-shares-secret-sauce-for-vision-zero-success-373939">said</a> at a transportation summit in April.As additions like bike lanes have grown in popularity, city council members who initially opposed them have changed their tune, Sharp said.

A New Jersey city hasn't had a single traffic death in almost 7 years. Here's why.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Los Angeles voted to invest in street safety after a two-decade high in traffic deaths.</li><li>But the LA firefighters union opposed the policy, arguing it will slow emergency response times.</li></ul>Los Angeles is the car capital of America. That also means it has some of the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/road-rage-traffic-deaths-car-crashes-pedestrians-los-angeles-vermont-2024-2">most dangerous roads in the country</a>. In 2023, <a target="_blank" href="https://abc7.com/south-los-angeles-teen-killed-hit-and-run-crash/14372665/#:~:text=According%20to%20statistics%20from%20the,the%20courthouse%2C%20it%20was%20postponed.">traffic fatalities</a> in the city hit a two-decade high. Of the <a target="_blank" href="https://xtown.la/2024/01/19/los-angeles-automobile-related-deaths-rise-to-337-fatalities-last-year/">337 people who were killed</a>, half were pedestrians. And traffic accidents are a leading <a target="_blank" href="https://ladotlivablestreets.org/programs/vision-zero">cause of death for kids</a> in the city.Many of the city's residents want to take action to make their streets safer. They're demanding improvements to pedestrian infrastructure, bike lanes, and mass transit.But firefighters — the very people tasked with keeping them safe — are standing in their way.In March, LA <a target="_blank" href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2024-03-05/2024-california-election-los-angeles-city-measure-hla-results">voted</a> overwhelmingly for a street safety policy that will finally enforce a nearly decade-old <a target="_blank" href="https://planning.lacity.gov/odocument/523f2a95-9d72-41d7-aba5-1972f84c1d36/Mobility_Plan_2035.pdf">mobility plan</a> to make the city's streets safer for non-drivers. The Healthy Streets Los Angeles Ballot Measure will mean hundreds of miles of new bike lanes, 300 miles of improved bus lanes, and updated public transit stations.But the union that represents LA's firefighters <a target="_blank" href="https://www.latimes.com/california/newsletter/2024-02-28/hla-street-safety-advocates-vs-firefighters-essential-california#:~:text=Why%20are%20firefighters%20opposed%20to,create%20more%20danger%20and%20chaos.">opposed</a> the policy, also known as Measure HLA, and aggressively campaigned against it. They argued that wider sidewalks, protected bike lanes, fewer driving lanes, and other street safety measures will make it harder for their trucks to navigate through traffic, elongating emergency response times. "Vehicles will not be able to pull to the right, and we're stuck behind them," a firefighter said in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5a7hlsZpV7c">a video</a> opposing the campaign. The union didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.Michael Schneider, founder and CEO of Streets For All, a nonprofit that ran the campaign in favor of Measure HLA, said his group reached out to the firefighters union to talk about the policy before they came out against it but didn't hear back. He noted that LA's fire department, which isn't allowed to engage in politics, signed off on the underlying mobility plan back in 2015. A study of the plan actually found that without the policy, emergency response times would get longer as vehicle traffic increased."They're very myopic in how they view public safety," Schneider said of fire officials. "A two-decade-high pedestrian deaths is a public safety crisis, too."But this battle between fire officials and street safety advocates isn't unique to LA. Fire departments across the country have for decades opposed safer street design. But this battle is increasingly playing out across the country as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/traffic-deaths-topped-40000-last-year-nhtsa-looks-reduce-distracted-dr-rcna145818">traffic deaths skyrocket</a>.<h2>The supremacy of fire codes</h2>When private vehicles began to dominate American roads in the 1920s, transportation engineers <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/2023/12/20/engineers-resist-narrow-lanes-change-coming">believed that wider streets</a> were safer, as they give drivers a larger margin for error. But as American cities became more car-centric, traffic accidents skyrocketed and engineers began to understand that the opposite is true: wider roads encourage drivers to go faster, leading to far more accidents, injuries, and deaths.Studies have found that vehicles traveling more than 20 miles per hour are far more likely to kill people they hit. In fact, a pedestrian is about 70 percent more likely to die if they're hit by a vehicle going 30 mph versus 25 mph, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propublica.org/article/unsafe-at-many-speeds">research has found</a>. Streets with driving lanes that are nine or 10 feet wide are significantly safer than those with 12-foot wide lanes, a major Johns Hopkins <a target="_blank" href="https://narrowlanes.americanhealth.jhu.edu/">study found last year</a>. "That is the opposite of the general belief and what has been the foundation for street design and lane-width guidelines," the researchers noted.These discoveries, however, aren't reflected in the fire codes that govern our streets.The vast majority of US states follow what's called the <a target="_blank" href="https://codes.iccsafe.org/content/IFC2024P1">International Fire Code</a>, updated every few years by a Texas-based nonprofit called the International Code Council. For decades, the code has called for streets to have at least 20 feet of unobstructed width. With a parking lane and sidewalks, residential streets in the US tend to be <a target="_blank" href="https://streetwidths.its.ucla.edu/#:~:text=In%20the%20United%20States%2C%20residential,than%20in%20most%20other%20countries.">around 50 feet wide</a> — far wider than in many other countries. In Osaka, Japan, and Paris, France, for example, the typical residential street is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.planning.org/blog/9229552/the-costs-of-wide-streets-in-the-us/">less than 20 feet wide.</a>Roads that encourage speed are <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-11-03/why-us-traffic-safety-fell-so-far-behind-other-countries?embedded-checkout=true">part of the reason</a> the US has far more <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/11/briefing/us-traffic-deaths.html">traffic deaths</a> than its peer countries. At the same time, US traffic fatalities far outnumber deaths from fires — while <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/traffic-deaths-topped-40000-last-year-nhtsa-looks-reduce-distracted-dr-rcna145818">40,000 people died</a> on American roads last year, <a target="_blank" href="https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/statistics/v11i2.pdf">fewer than 3,000 people die</a> annually in the US in residential fires, on average.The international fire code's name is a bit of a misnomer: it's used virtually nowhere outside the US. And it differs in key ways from fire safety regulations used by other advanced countries. American fire trucks and other firefighting equipment also tend to be much bigger and less able to navigate narrow streets than their equivalents in other countries.The fire code's dangerous results reflect a failure to understand safety holistically, experts say. "If you become overly specialized and focus only on one problem without considering at all the effect that you might be having on other problems, you can very easily do a lot of harm while trying to do good," said Patrick Siegman, a transportation planner and economist.<div type="image" title="A small Tokyo fire truck with a woman firefighter in foreground" height="853" width="1280" msid="109475862" hostid="261" sizebytes="103606"></div><h2>A growing battle</h2>Conflict between fire officials and street designers has become increasingly common. In most cases, cities and states bend to the will of their fire departments. Indeed, many in the government are unaware of how dangerous their policies are."Unless you've really gotten to know the issue, planners, even transportation engineers, often don't realize the implications of the fire code for street designs and ultimately for traffic safety," Siegman said.But in some places, road safety advocates are winning out. In Baltimore, an attempt in 2018 to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-12-11/fire-trucks-and-engines-are-too-big-let-s-shrink-them?embedded-checkout=true">amend the city's fire code</a> to make room for bike lanes erupted in an ugly public fight that included a firefighter assaulting a city planner. But the city's code was ultimately <a target="_blank" href="https://blog.qrfs.com/172-how-walkable-streets-are-changing-fire-code-and-safety/#:~:text=In%202018%2C%20city%20officials%20in,allowing%20for%20narrower%20street%20widths.">amended</a>.In 2013, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors <a target="_blank" href="https://sf.streetsblog.org/2013/06/19/board-of-supervisors-unanimously-passes-wieners-ped-safety-reforms">changed its interpretation</a> of the fire code so that sidewalks, pedestrian islands, and other curbs less than six inches high weren't considered an obstruction to emergency vehicles. It's allowed the city to build wider sidewalks and more protected bike lanes, among other features to boost street safety.San Francisco's fire department has also adapted to safer streets in another way by buying smaller fire trucks. The California city's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.wired.com/story/sanfrancisco-smaller-firetrucks/">so-called "Vision Zero truck"</a> — a reference to the road safety policy — is a bit shorter and skinnier than its older trucks and has a smaller turning radius, which makes it far more capable of traveling down narrow, windy streets.Not to mention that fire trucks with full fire-fighting capabilities aren't necessary in most instances. Only about 5% of the 1 million calls to fire departments nationally are fire-related, <a target="_blank" href="https://apnews.com/general-news-15e06ad3778f4ee88b67a1bdbbc97c29">according to</a> the National Fire Protection Association. Instead, firefighters largely respond to medical emergencies, which don't require trucks carrying 500 gallons of water."There are other ways to put out fires and respond to emergencies," said Andy Boenau, a transportation engineer and urbanist activist. "Do you need to send the biggest fire truck when someone's choking on a walnut?"Dan Burden, a veteran transportation planner who served as Florida's first state bicycle and pedestrian coordinator, works with and trains fire officials on road safety issues. He said fire departments can be convinced to support safer street design if they're heavily engaged by planners. "Too often, the fire administrator is brought in too late in the process," he said.Burden, whose father was a fire chief, believes they can find common ground."My dad always said, 'Dan, don't over-build for our needs, build streets for people first, and we'll figure out a way to make things happen,'" Burden said.

Los Angeles firefighters fought investments in safer streets. For decades, fire regulations have made roads deadlier.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Google announced a new AI feature for its community-driven navigation app to improve road safety. </li><li>The feature will provide alerts to drivers about crash-prone roads in advance so they can plan ahead. </li></ul>Google rolled out a new AI feature on its community-driven navigation app Waze which will alert drivers about crash-prone roads in advance in an effort to improve road safety, it <a target="_blank" href="https://blog.google/waze/crash-history-alerts-arrive-to-the-waze-map/">announced in a Tuesday blog post</a>.Waze, formerly known as FreeMap Israel, was founded in 2006 and then acquired by Google for $1.3 billion in 2013. It's a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/tech/what-is-waze?r=US&amp;IR=T">community-focused traffic and navigation app</a> that provides real-time updates about hazards, accidents, speed cameras, and weather conditions based on data supplied by drivers. Its latest "crash history alerts" feature uses AI and reports from other drivers who use Waze to combine historical crash data and key information about a route such as its usual traffic levels or whether it's a highway or local road. If the route has a history of accidents, the driver will be warned in advance, and before they reach that part of their journey so they can plan ahead. However, Waze, won't show as many alerts on roads drivers regularly navigate, saying the extra alerts could pose a distraction. Waze is focused on social interactions between drivers and allows users to chat directly with their friends, comment on road incidents on the map, and even lets you connect to music streaming accounts. The app lets users earn points and graduate different levels from Waze baby, Wazer, Waze Knight, and Waze Royalty.Road traffic crashes are a major cause of death globally and in the US, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cdc.gov/injury/features/global-road-safety/index.html">according to the CDC</a>. Almost 3,700 people are killed everyday in crashes involving vehicles like cars, buses, and motorcycle and its the eighth leading cause of death in the world.

Google's Waze will now alert drivers about roads prone to crashes

In its latest update, the Hamas-controlled GMO said the dead included about 6,000 <keyword id="6354493" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="children" source="Orion">children</keyword> and 4,000 <keyword id="624" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="women" source="Orion">women</keyword>. This Office has assumed the Palestinian Ministry of Health's role following the collapse of services and communications at hospitals in north <keyword id="39746" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gaza" source="Orion">Gaza</keyword>. On Monday, the Ministry in Ramallah, which takes its data from hospitals and other sources in the Gaza Strip, put the number killed at 12,700. But health updates since then, the Ministry said serious disruptions to communications networks in Gaza have made its own efforts at accurate data collection impossible, CNN reported. Meanwhile, the number of injured persons have also soared to more than 35,000. On Thursday, the Israeli <keyword id="6359526" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="military" source="Orion">military</keyword> continued calling and exerting pressure on residents of the north to leave southwards through a "corridor" along the main traffic artery, Salah Ad Deen Road, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). OCHA data estimates that less than 500 people had moved south, the second-lowest volume of movement observed since the "corridor" was opened. The low volume however, is largely attributed to the expectations generated by the humanitarian pause to be implemented from Friday. The pause agreement will reportedly involve the release of some of the Israeli hostages held in Gaza and some Palestinheld in Israeli prisons. Since the war erupted on October 7, over 1.7 million people in Gaza have been estimated to be internally displaced. Of them, about 1 million are staying in at least 156 UN Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) shelters across the Gaza Strip. On Thursday, Israeli forces continued their operation in and around the Al-Shifa Hospital for the eighth consecutive day. Some 250 patients and staff members are estimated to remain at Shifa, currently non-operational due to critical shortages of power, water and medical supplies. As of Friday morning, the overall <keyword id="6397442" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="death-toll" source="Orion">death toll</keyword> in Israel stood at over 1,200. So far, the names of most fatalities in Israel have been released, including 859 civilians and police officers. Of those whose ages have been provided, 33 are children. Also the number of Israeli soldiers killed since the start of the ground offensive in Gaza has remained 75. According to the Israeli authorities, 235 people are held captive in Gaza, including Israelis and foreign nationals. About 40 of them are reportedly children. So far, four civilian hostages have been released by Hamas; one Israeli soldier was rescued by Israeli forces; and three bodies of hostages have reportedly been retrieved by Israeli forces.

Gaza death toll surges to more than 14,800

<ul class="summary-list"><li>From South America to Asia, there are busy <keyword id="6358996" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="roads">roads</keyword> that are truly terrifying.</li><li>They include steep cliffs, rough terrain, and extreme weather conditions.</li><li>We explore eight that should be taken by only the most fearless drivers.</li></ul>Following is a transcript of the <keyword id="21654" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="video">video</keyword>.Narrator: Whether they're carved into the side of steep cliffs, prone to natural disasters, or disappear in an instant, some roads can be downright terrifying. From North America to Asia, you can find highways meant for the most fearless drivers. These are eight of the world's most <keyword id="33799" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="dangerous">dangerous</keyword> roads.India's <keyword id="749258" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Zoji-La">Zoji La</keyword> is a pass in the Himalayas that ventures 11,575 feet above sea level, completely unpaved as it reaches the summit. The road has no barriers separating drivers from going over the edge of its steep vertical cliffs. Zoji La also experiences extreme weather conditions. This includes heavy snow that can be 50 to 80 feet deep. Over 60 landslides have been reported on the road. In 2018, India approved the Zoji La tunnel project. It involves the construction of an 8.5-mile tunnel under the pass, which will reduce the time to cross the Zoji La from more than three hours to just 15 minutes.Norway is one of the safest countries to drive in, with only 20 fatal car accidents per 1 million people. However, it's also home to one of the most dangerous passageways, the Atlantic Ocean Road. The area is prone to major sea storms, meaning the bridges along the road become hazardous for drivers. During inclement weather, massive waves regularly sweep over the pavement, accompanied by powerful gusts of wind. Careless <keyword id="30692" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="driving">driving</keyword> can be a recipe for disaster. Fortunately, there are few serious accidents on record because of precautions taken by local drivers and authorities when storms hit. Still, footage shows just how many close calls drivers have encountered and why this is a road trip best saved for a sunny day.Stretching 414 miles through the most barren parts of Alaska is the James Dalton Highway. Ending just a few miles short of the Arctic Ocean, it's one of the only roads for getting supplies to some of the northernmost parts of Alaska. The Dalton is no ordinary highway, though. As drivers travel north, they become more and more isolated from civilization. For a full 240-mile stretch, you won't find gas stations, rest stops, or even cellphone coverage. Travelers must be prepared with emergency supplies and survival gear. A simple breakdown could leave you stranded for days. The extreme Arctic weather creates limited visibility, icy roads, and enormous potholes. In some parts, the temperature can drop to as little as minus 80 degrees at night. This doesn't help when the road itself is 75% mud and gravel. This highway is best saved for only those whose job requires using it.The 800-mile <keyword id="188701" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Karakoram">Karakoram</keyword> Highway is a mountainous road that connects Pakistan to China. But the world's highest paved international highway is also one of the most dangerous. The uppermost section in Pakistan climbs 15,397 feet above sea level but lacks any guardrails and is only wide enough for one car to fit through. Besides the hairpin turns that overlook steep mountain cliffs, it's the weather that may be Karakoram's most dangerous factor. The highway is regularly hit with heavy snowfall and monsoons that lead to flooding, landslides, and rockfall. Fatal accidents are not uncommon. Fortunately, as part of the $46 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor project, reconstruction of the highway's Pakistani portion is underway.Known worldwide as "<keyword id="8961351" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="death-road">Death Road</keyword>," <keyword id="104154" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Bolivia">Bolivia</keyword>'s 43-mile Yungas Road connects the country's capital city, La Paz, to the town of Coroico. Carved into the side of the Cordillera Oriental mountains, it features few guardrails to keep motorists and cyclists from going straight over the edge. Most of the road is a single lane and made up of dirt and gravel. Its most dangerous features include heavy rain and fog, unpredictable landslides, and cliffs that drop 2,000 feet. Until 2006, Yungas Road was the only option for traveling from Coroico to La Paz. That trip is estimated to have claimed 200 to 300 lives a year. Still, many locals and daredevil tourists make the journey along Death Road regularly.The Passage du Gois isn't just dangerous, it's a natural phenomenon. The 3-mile road connects mainland France to the island of Noirmoutier. Due to high tides, it disappears under the ocean twice a day, completely covered by waves. With that length, if you're caught in the floods, you might not reach dry land before you're chest-deep in water. These hazards are why France has signs that let people know when the road is passable. Elevated rescue towers are even put in place, and tourists are advised not to use the road unless absolutely necessary.Winding through the Andes Mountains is Chile's Caracoles Pass, which translates to "Snail's Pass." It gains its name from the dizzying 29 hairpin turns that climb to an elevation of 10,500 feet above sea level, right at the Chilean-Argentinian border. To make matters worse, there are no guardrails. However, the road is covered with snow for most part of the year, forcing drivers to err on the side of caution. The traffic is intense, forming long convoys, hence the name.The Million Dollar Highway stretches 25 miles on Colorado's Route 550. But despite being a highway, it takes 42 minutes to drive. That's because it has a speed limit of 25 miles per hour. The road is carved into the side of the San Juan Mountains and reaches an elevation of 11,018 feet. However, it has no guardrails between the pavement and the sheer cliffs. As it climbs higher, the road only narrows and the turns get tighter. The highway is plagued by extreme weather as well. Storms and heavy snowfall make the road constantly at risk for rockslides and avalanches during the winter months. Records show that from 2005 to 2015 there were 412 accidents and eight fatalities, most involving single-vehicle crashes.From unguarded cliffs to natural disasters, these terrifying roads all have their own dangers. These hazards and risks are why it truly takes guts to traverse them.

8 of the world's most dangerous roads

<ul class="summary-list"><li>More than 38,000 traffic deaths were recorded in the US in 2020.</li><li>The California <keyword id="6354768" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Highway">Highway</keyword> Patrol issued 2,493 citations for <keyword id="63078" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Speeding">speeding</keyword> over 100 mph during the first month of the state's lockdown.</li><li>Over one weekend in April 2020, street-racing incidents in Dallas resulted in 224 citations and one death.</li></ul><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/highway-speeds-increased-as-coronavirus-emptied-roads-2020-4">Despite the pandemic significantly emptying roadways</a>, traffic data shows the number of highway deaths in 2020 was the greatest in more than a decade due to higher average speeds, motorists driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol, and a slight decline in seatbelt use, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/covid-19-speeding-highway-deaths-30a26b82eeab5880abab5f2b30952725">the Associated Press reported</a>.Estimates from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show nationwide traffic deaths in 2020 grew 7.2% to 38,680, even though there was a 13.2% reduction in miles traveled, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/covid-19-speeding-highway-deaths-30a26b82eeab5880abab5f2b30952725">according to AP</a>.From March 19, the day California's stay-at-home order began, to April 19, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) issued 2,493 citations statewide for speeding more than 100 mph, as compared to 1,335 during the same period the previous year, <a href="https://www.chp.ca.gov/PressReleases/Pages/Less-Highway-Congestion-During-Stay-At-Home-Orders-.aspx">according to a CHP press release from April 2020</a>."It is alarming to see the number of citations officers are writing for excessive speeds on California roadways," CHP Commissioner Warren Stanley said in the <a href="https://www.chp.ca.gov/PressReleases/Pages/Less-Highway-Congestion-During-Stay-At-Home-Orders-.aspx">press release</a>. "Higher speeds can lead to much more serious injuries and significantly increase the chance of death should a crash occur. Keep yourself and those on the road around you safe. Slow down and drive at a safe, legal speed."California isn't the only state experiencing this trend: Business Insider reporter Kristen Lee also spoke to officers in Texas and Georgia about their <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-dangerous-driving-illegal-roads-empty-police-jails-cops-spread-2020-5">experiences patrolling during the early months of the pandemic</a>.While speeding citations decreased overall in Georgia, the over-100-mph citations increased by 60% during the first 12 days of the state's lockdown, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-dangerous-driving-illegal-roads-empty-police-jails-cops-spread-2020-5">Business Insider reported</a>. In April 2020, <a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2020/04/27/dallas-police-issue-more-than-200-citations-at-weekend-street-racing-incidents-captured-on-video/">the Dallas Morning News</a> reported on a series of street-racing incidents over one weekend resulting in 224 citations and one death."While there is less traffic on the road, it does not give you free rein to speed. You're putting your life and other motorists' lives in danger," Lt. Stephanie L. Stallings, the public information director with the Georgia State Patrol, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-dangerous-driving-illegal-roads-empty-police-jails-cops-spread-2020-5">told Business Insider</a>.

2020 traffic data shows the greatest number of highway deaths recorded in more than a decade

Last year, transport minister Nitin Gadkari said that road accidents are “more serious than the COVID-19 pandemic," and this is corroborated by the data compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau. Over 1.55 lakh lives were lost in road crashes across India just in 2021, says a recent report by the NCRB. So, every day 425 people lose their lives on Indian roads and the recent high-profile death of former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry has put the spotlight yet again on <keyword id="87280" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="road-safety" source="Orion">road safety</keyword>. <div type="image" title="Over 1.55 lakh lives were lost in road crashes across India just in 2021: NCRB" msid="94084328" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Over 1.55 lakh lives were lost in road crashes across India just in 2021: NCRB&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The report said that during 2021, two-wheelers have contributed 44.5% of total road accidental deaths (69,240 deaths), followed by cars at 15.1% with 23,531 deaths and trucks or lorries had a 9.4% contribution (14,622 deaths). <div type="image" title="Road accident fatalities have gone up since 2020" msid="94084331" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Road accident fatalities have gone up since 2020&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The report also highlighted that overspeeding remains the biggest cause of road accidents—contributing to 56% of the total road crash deaths (87,050 deaths), followed by dangerous or careless driving, contributing to 27.5% of total crash deaths (42,853 deaths). Most of these road accidents in India have happened on national highways. India accounts for about 2% of motor vehicles globally. Yet, it is the <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/india-accounts-for-11-per-cent-of-global-death-in-road-accidents-world-bank/article33834556.ece">home </a>to more than 11% of the world’s road traffic deaths. According to a <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/it-s-time-to-put-an-end-to-india-s-road-safety-crisis/story-FrTmaEoqfKC1EnoryY4nxN.html#:~:text=According%20to%20a%20United%20Nations,rate%20of%2043%20a%20day.">UN study</a>, India loses 3% of its GDP to road accidents by removing prime-age adults from the workforce. Despite the high number of fatalities, in India, people wearing seat belts is a rare sight. While rear seat belts have been mandatory under the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, most kaali peeli taxis don’t even have seat belts for passengers. <div type="image" title="Most kaali peeli taxis don’t even have seat belts for passengers" msid="94084343" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Most kaali peeli taxis don&amp;#8217;t even have seat belts for passengers&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> Rear seat belts prevent fatality According to the World Health Organisation, the use of rear seat belts can prevent fatality by 25% and injuries by 75%. <div type="image" title="Use of rear seat belts can prevent fatality by 25% and injuries by 75%: NCRB" msid="94084418" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Use of rear seat belts can prevent fatality by 25% and injuries by 75%: NCRB&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> Reports suggest that Mistry was seated in the back and was not wearing a seatbelt. Now, after Mistry’s demise has sent shockwaves across the country, Gadkari said that even chief ministers don’t follow safety rules. Some ministers even use a clip so that the alarm does not make any sound, said Gadkari, when there is no belt. After the incident, Gadkari also said that the ministry is now working towards making six airbags compulsory in all cars. It was not too long ago, just in February 2022 that the Indian <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/auto/cars/govt-makes-three-point-seat-belts-mandatory-for-all-front-facing-passengers-in-car/articleshow/89501540.cms">government </a>had also made it mandatory for automakers to provide three-point seat belts for all front-facing passengers in a car, which is also applicable for the middle seat in the rear row of a car. It is also stated in the rules Motor Vehicles Act 138(3) that fastening seat belts is compulsory for passengers sitting in the front as well as the rear seats. However, India fails to follow the law of its land. As per a 2019 report by SaveLIFE Foundation, less than 1% of people in India use rear seat belts. 37.8% of all the people surveyed didn’t even know that any such legal compulsion existed. While 23.9% of people didn’t even know that rear seat belts existed. The centre has also made it compulsory for all cars to have six airbags across from October 1. After losing his ‘good friend,’ minister Gadkari said that all cars exported out of India have 6 airbags and asked then why Indian cars have only four airbags. What India can learn from other countries In 1997, Sweden adopted a ‘Vision Zero’ policy based on the idea that “no loss of life was acceptable.” The policy did not focus on changing human behaviour, the emphasis was on designing a better system of roads and other infrastructure, vehicle technology and enforcement. On the other hand, Singapore uses advanced warning lights that alert drivers about the upcoming signal and vehicle speed. <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterlyon/2020/08/27/frightening-consequences-for-drink-drivers-in-japan/">Japan </a>also has a strict policy for drunken drivers. It has a zero percent blood-alcohol level standard for drivers and individuals caught driving under the influence can face imprisonment for up to 15 years. In Switzerland, passengers travelling in the same car as a drunk driver are also considered liable and can lose their own licenses. Apart from strictly enforcing speed limits and other road regulations, Norway has found a unique approach to reduce its fatalities. It has made it mandatory for drivers to always have their headlights on while driving. Safety measures taken by automakers From installing airbags and adding stringent seatbelt alarms to running awareness campaigns, automakers have been trying to up safety for India’s car passengers. Maruti, Hyundai and Tata Motors offer six airbags across some models. Luxury car companies like Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Volvo are also offering six airbags and the number increases on the higher-end models. Safety rules you must follow To stay safe, one must <a href="https://highwaypolice.maharashtra.gov.in/en/road-safety-guideline/#:~:text=Always%20obey%20Road%20safety%20rules,as%20markets%20and%20residential%20areas.">obey </a><keyword id="1501776" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="road-safety-rules" source="Orion">road safety rules</keyword> and regulations of India. <ul><li>Look for the traffic signs before you cross signals. </li><li>Drive within the speed limits prescribed. Ideally one should drive at approximately not more than 30 kmph near busy places such as markets and residential areas.</li><li>Keep vehicle oiled and serviced. A sudden breakdown of the vehicle on the road can cause hardships not only to you but also to fellow drivers and traffic personnel. </li><li>Stop or slow down your vehicle and allow the pedestrians to crossroads at unmanned/signalled Zebra crossings.</li><li>Always wear seat belts while driving four-wheelers.</li><li>Avoid rash or negligent driving.</li><li>Do not drink and drive.</li><li>Avoid using mobile phones while driving. In case of an urgent call, park the vehicle to the side of the road and put the brake lights on, and allow other motorists to pass by. </li><li>Turn the brake lights ON before stopping so that the vehicles behind can avoid a collision.</li></ul>Here's a small video <div type="image" title="All you need to know about India’s rules for road safety" msid="94084511" hostid="261" sizebytes="1771684" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;All you need to know about India’s rules for road safety&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>Before we let you go, here's what we want you to know- Business Insider India brings you SaaS Scions, a 6-part video series chronicling Indian SaaS scions - SaaS leaders who have come to define this sector in India. And now for the world. <div type="image" title="Business Insider India brings you SaaS Scions" msid="94084538" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Business Insider India brings you SaaS Scions&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

SIMPLY PUT: All you need to know about India’s rules for road safety

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A "pretext" <keyword id="1377905" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="traffic-stop">traffic stop</keyword> is when <keyword id="11098" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="police">police</keyword> pull you over for a minor traffic violation and then use that to search for a more serious offense.</li><li>These stops don't reduce <keyword id="39494" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Crime">crime</keyword>, and too often lead to the deaths of Black motorists.</li><li>Until there's extensive reformation, police shouldn't be allowed in situations where they are prone to kill.</li><li>This is an <keyword id="6356002" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="opinion">opinion</keyword> column. The thoughts expressed are those of the author.</li></ul>On April 11, 20-year-old <keyword id="11087239" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="daunte-wright">Daunte Wright</keyword> was driving down a street in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. As many of us made sure to do at his age, he had an air-freshener hanging from his rear-view mirror. But in Minnesota, it's illegal to have items <a href="https://www.insider.com/daunte-wright-minnesota-rearview-mirror-law-2021-4">dangling from your rear-view mirror</a>, and so, according to Daunte's mother, this prompted Brooklyn Center police to pull him over. Daunte was <a href="https://www.insider.com/daunte-wright-brooklyn-center-police-shooting-accidental-chief-says-2021-4">killed moments later</a>.After a night of heated protests, Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon held a press conference and said that the officer who killed Daunte, 26-year veteran Kim Potter, accidentally used her gun instead of her Taser. In body cam footage of the shooting, the she can be heard yelling "Taser! Taser!" before shooting Daunte with her firearm.Potter has been <a href="https://www.insider.com/daunte-wright-ex-officer-kim-potter-charged-over-killing-bailed-2021-4">charged with second-degree manslaughter</a>, so Daunte's family may see justice. But the incident still speaks to many glaring issues with law enforcement. How could an experienced veteran mistake her gun for a Taser? Why does an officer need a gun for a traffic stop anyway? The most prominent of these issues deals with why Daunte was pulled over in the first place. Whether it was for the air-freshener or for, as police say, expired tags, it has little to do with traffic violations themselves. It has everything to do with what police can find afterwards.<h2>Minority report</h2>In 2014, I was pulled over in Columbus, Ohio, driving my older brother's Nissan Maxima. The large sedan had a custom body kit, an over-powering subwoofer in the trunk, and, fatefully, tinted windows. In Ohio, it's illegal to tint your windows darker than 50%, and while I didn't know what the percentage of the tint was - the car's previous owner was the one who tinted it - the white officer who pulled me over thought they were dark enough to investigate.He told me that dark windows are illegal. I had no idea. He told me to unlock the back doors, and even though I wondered if he was allowed to do that, I complied. He and another officer used blinding flashlights to search around the back seat for anything nefarious. Slightly disoriented from the combination of blue lights from the police cruiser and the frantic illumination coming from the officers' flashlights, I waited in the driver's seat, bouncing my knee in a fit of anxiety - not because I had anything illegal in the car, but because this was the start of a painfully familiar story.Minor traffic violations too often lead to the deaths of Black drivers. In 2016, Philando Castile was shot and killed after he was stopped for having a broken taillight. Sandra Bland, too, <a href="https://abc13.com/sandra-bland-arrest-death-jailhouse/2211158/">was found dead in jail</a> just three days after being pulled over for failing to use her turning signal. This goes for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/30/us/university-of-cincinnati-officer-indicted-in-shooting-death-of-motorist.html">Samuel Debose</a> and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/09/us/former-south-carolina-officer-is-indicted-in-death-of-walter-scott.html">Walter Scott</a>, as well.The officer that pulled me over didn't find anything in the car. I hadn't even realized he was back at my window because the beam from his partner's flashlight was still bouncing about. They let me go with a warning, and aside from telling me it was a violation, didn't really pressure me to get new windows with less tint. That's because the possibility of finding something more criminal than the tinted windows was the reason they stopped me in the first place.In law enforcement, a "pretextual" or "pretext" traffic stop is one where police pull someone over for a minor violation - like running a stop sign or failing to use your turn signal - and use the traffic stop to fish for a more serious crime. Historically, police <a href="https://wtop.com/montgomery-county/2020/10/amid-scrutiny-montgomery-co-police-argue-in-favor-of-pretext-traffic-stops/">have argued that pretext stops</a> help them nab bad guys, but, like with everything else police do, these pretext stops affect Black people a lot more than white people.A <a href="https://www.nyu.edu/about/news-publications/news/2020/may/black-drivers-more-likely-to-be-stopped-by-police.html">study</a> by researchers at New York University showed that white drivers are 20% less likely to be pulled over than Black drivers. The study also found that while Black drivers were less likely to be carrying illegal substances than white drivers, they were stopped up to twice as many times. Indeed, in the years leading up to Philando Castile's death, he was stopped by police <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/17/us/before-philando-castiles-fatal-encounter-a-costly-trail-of-minor-traffic-stops.html">49 times</a> for minor traffic violations.The racial disparity of pretext traffic stops wouldn't be nearly as problematic if the stops didn't often lead to the shooting deaths of Black drivers. In 2015, the Washington Post found that<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/a-disproportionate-number-of-black-victims-in-fatal-traffic-stops/2015/12/24/c29717e2-a344-11e5-9c4e-be37f66848bb_story.html"> 33% of people killed by police</a> after a traffic stop were Black, despite Black people only making up <a href="https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?d=ACS%205-Year%20Estimates%20Data%20Profiles&amp;tid=ACSDP5Y2015.DP05DP05">12.6% of the population</a> that year.<h2>License and hesitation</h2>Traffic stops, in general, don't really do much for driver safety. It's hard to believe that getting yelled at for my tinted windows helped make the roads safer. Indeed, Jalopnik's Raphael Orlove <a href="https://jalopnik.com/the-case-for-ending-all-traffic-stops-1843925565">noted a finding</a> in Stanford's "Open Policing Project": Traffic stops "can place heavy burdens on Black and Hispanic drivers without improving public safety."And pretext stops in particular don't even reduce crime. An <a href="https://policylab.stanford.edu/projects/nashville-traffic-stops.html">analysis</a> by the Stanford Computational Policy Lab found that traffic stops in Nashville "had no discernible effect on serious crime rates, and only infrequently resulted in the recovery of contraband of a custodial arrest."If the best thing a traffic stop can do is pressure someone to fix their taillight, and the worst thing it can do is kill a human being, then why the hell are we even talking about this? Ban all traffic stops.I'm confident in the police system's ability to find new, creative ways to perpetuate racism, but there are alternatives to a traffic stop that won't lead to the deaths of Black motorists. For instance, red-light cameras already enforce traffic laws without having to stop the driver, so why can't police departments refocus their efforts? Why can't police mail you tickets with instructions to pay online, like toll road administrators do when you don't have cash? In a world inching towards online dependency, I refuse to believe that police need to physically pull you over to give you a ticket. If the goal is truly to make roads safer, then the police don't need to be physically involved.Daunte <a href="https://apnews.com/article/daunte-wright-minnesota-police-shooting-1ad1b12b77f35f9fa01e680b73add7d5?utm_source=Twitter&amp;utm_campaign=SocialFlow&amp;utm_medium=APedium=AP">called his mom</a> during his traffic stop and told her that police pulled him over because of his air-freshener. After the call, and according to the body cam footage, he was told he was being arrested on an outstanding warrant. The pretext traffic stop worked like a charm, but Daunte ended up dead. This is incredibly avoidable.Reasonable people may ask why officers can't be trained to stop making these mistakes. The problem with that question is that officers who kill are not making mistakes. These killings keep happening because police act exactly the way they're trained to.Seth Stoughton, a former police officer, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/12/police-gun-shooting-training-ferguson/383681/">wrote about</a> the tactics police departments use to train their officers:"One common scenario teaches officers that a suspect leaning into a car can pull out a gun and shoot at officers before they can react. Another teaches that even when an officer is pointing a gun at a suspect whose back is turned, the suspect can spin around and fire first. Yet another teaches that a knife-carrying suspect standing 20 feet away can run up to an officer and start stabbing before the officer can get their gun out of the holster." And when it comes to whether an officer should consider whether they could be making a mistake and shooting unnecessarily, Stoughton wrote that they are taught to believe the risk of a mistake is far less than the risk of hesitation. Basically, they are taught that it's "kill or be killed," even if that isn't the reality.It would take a mountain-moving effort to change the way police officers are trained. For one, police academies began militarizing their training tactics in the 1960s and '70s, as the "war on drugs" escalated under President Reagan. These issues are deeply ingrained. Secondly, the culture of policing may be just as important as the training itself. "You can have the best training in the world but at the end of the day it comes down to morals, it comes down to the culture of an organization, it comes down to what's tolerated," Erik Misselt, the executive director of the Minnesota Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training, <a href="https://hechingerreport.org/police-education-is-broken-can-it-be-fixed/">told the Hechinger Report.</a>Until a reformation in training and police culture happens, police shouldn't be allowed in situations where they are prone to kill. There is nothing a police officer could find in someone's car that is worth the life of the person driving it, so it's time to remove these encounters entirely.After all, a broken police system is far more dangerous than a broken taillight.

You Searched For "road traffic deaths" and got 12 results

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As a Black person, I've been targeted by 'pretext' traffic stops. Daunte Wright's death proves why we need to ban them.

Manny Fidel

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