Five major highways and expressways passing through the Millennium City claimed 228 lives and recorded 206 fatal crashes in a single year, the recently released road safety report has revealed. Among them, the Delhi-Jaipur Highway emerged as the most dangerous stretch in the district, killing an average of 3.34 people per km.
The 44-kilometre corridor of NH-48 passing through Gurugram alone accounted for 147 deaths and 133 fatal accidents. The numbers paint a grim reality: a life is lost roughly every 300 metres on this stretch. Taken together, the five highways account for 53 per cent of all road fatalities recorded across the district in the same period.
The figures for the other four corridors are equally alarming. The Gurugram-Alwar Road or Sohna Road (NH-248A), spanning 26 km, recorded 31 deaths and 30 fatal crashes at an average of 1.2 deaths per km. The Sohna-Rewari Road (NH-919) saw 21 deaths and 17 fatal crashes across 15 km, averaging 1.44 deaths per km. The Dwarka Expressway (NH-248BB) recorded 16 deaths and 15 fatal crashes over 19 km at 0.84 deaths per km. The Jhajjar Road state highway logged 13 deaths and 11 fatal crashes across 17 kilometres, averaging 0.78 deaths per km.
Experts from the traffic police and road safety organisations point to illegal cuts made by local residents and dhaba owners as a primary cause of accidents.
Notably, driving on the wrong side in pursuit of shortcuts on the Dwarka Expressway, Sohna Elevated Highway and Delhi-Jaipur Highway is a routine practice. Residents of housing societies and villages along these corridors also rue the lack of foot overbridges, underpasses and proper lighting.
The government has upped its ante to address the issue, with the district administration directing NHAI and PWD officials to submit a detailed roadmap within 21 days. “Road safety is our top priority and we will not allow these black spots to keep claiming lives,” DC Uttam Singh said.
