Kerala national highway road deaths accounted for half of all road accident fatalities reported in the state between 2021 and 2026, Public Works Department minister P K Basheer told the Kerala Assembly on October 15. He attributed crashes primarily to speeding and traffic-rule violations, while also acknowledging that road infrastructure deficiencies contribute to accidents.
Responding to questions from legislators, Basheer said construction shortcomings could not be treated as the sole cause of road accidents. However, he said infrastructure-related risks remained among the contributing factors, making road design, maintenance and safety provisions part of the state’s accident-prevention response.
The minister said joint inspections are conducted at locations where accidents occur frequently. The inspections involve the police, the Motor Vehicles Department and the agencies responsible for the road concerned. Their purpose is to identify the causes of crashes and recommend corrective measures.
Basheer said the condition of a site, its past accident history and existing risks are reviewed before estimates are prepared for road restoration. This assessment, he said, allows safety provisions to be included in the restoration work instead of treating repairs only as a response to physical damage.
The state is also using scientific studies by the National Transportation Planning and Research Centre, or Natpac, to identify major accident-prone stretches as black spots. The studies are intended to guide the introduction of safety measures on locations where crashes are repeatedly reported.
On national highways, both temporary and permanent remedies are being planned and implemented at hazardous black spots, according to the minister. The measures include solar blinkers, rumble strips, speed humps, reflective road signs, road markings and road studs. These interventions are designed to improve driver awareness, indicate changes in road conditions and moderate vehicle speeds at high-risk locations.
Basheer said safety measures are also being introduced at dangerous curves and medians. Metal crash barriers and wire-rope barriers are among the interventions being installed at such locations, providing physical separation or reducing the severity of vehicles leaving their intended path.
The Assembly statement places national highways at the centre of Kerala’s road-safety challenge, while identifying driver behaviour and infrastructure conditions as interconnected factors. It also indicates that the state’s response is being organised through coordination between enforcement agencies, road authorities and technical institutions.
The next steps identified by the minister are the continuation of Natpac’s scientific studies, joint inspections at accident-prone locations and the implementation of temporary and permanent safety remedies at hazardous black spots.
