Parliament Question: Pedestrian fatalities and need for walkable road infrastructure

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO - 2963 ANSWERED ON - 18/03/2026 PEDESTRIAN FATALITIES AND NEED FOR WALKABLE ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE 2963. SHRI S NIRANJAN REDDY: Will the Minister of ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS be pleased to state: (a) whether the Ministry recognises that lack of safe and continuous pedestrian infrastructure, including footpaths and zebra crossings on urban arterial roads and National Highways has contributed to high pedestrian fatalities; (b) if so, the State-wise/UT-wise details of pedestrian fatalities in the last three years; (c) whether the Ministry has issued any road design norms to ensure pedestrian-friendly and walkable streets; (d) whether any specific scheme or programme has been developed to improve walkability and pedestrian safety; and (e) the steps being taken to ensure that road design prioritises pedestrian safety alongside vehicle mobility? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS (SHRI NITIN JAIRAM GADKARI) (a) to (e) National Highways (NHs) works are carried out as per standards, guidelines, manual, code of practice of Indian Roads Congress as well as specifications for Road and Bridge Works. Pedestrian infrastructure such as pedestrian underpasses, footpaths, foot-over bridges, pedestrian crossings, are provided based on detailed surveys and site requirements as per IRC:103-2022 “Guidelines for Pedestrian Facilities” to ensure pedestrian safety. Based on the category of road and traffic volume, various traffic calming measures such as transverse bar markings, rumble strips, raised pedestrian crossings, speed tables, etc. are adopted for speed management to ensure the safety of pedestrians alongside vehicle mobility. Further, road safety audit is conducted on all National Highways (NHs) at design, construction, and pre-opening stage of National Highway projects as well as on existing NHs for ensuring safety of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users. The provisions of aforementioned guidelines are implemented based on road safety audits and site requirements. The State-wise/UT-wise details of pedestrian fatalities on all roads in the last three years are Annexed.ANNEXURE ANNEXURE REFERRED IN REPLY TO PART (a) to (e) OF RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2963 FOR 18.03.2026 ASKED BY SHRI S NIRANJAN REDDY REGARDING PEDESTRIAN FATALITIES AND NEED FOR WALKABLE ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE Pedestrians Killed in road accidents on all roads in India S.no States/UTs 2022 2023 2024(P) 1 Andhra Pradesh 1604 1645 1739 2 Arunachal Pradesh 7 1 1 3 Assam 506 793 877 4 Bihar 3345 3462 4149 5 Chhattisgarh 741 942 1018 6 Goa 51 44 42 7 Gujarat 1568 1757 1747 8 Haryana 1231 1386 866 9 Himachal Pradesh 199 122 185 10 Jharkhand 479 718 702 11 Karnataka 2105 2418 2321 12 Kerala 1158 1147 1058 13 Madhya Pradesh 1672 1793 1928 14 Maharashtra 2894 3110 3344 15 Manipur 32 17 20 16 Meghalaya 42 56 58 17 Mizoram 9 17 20 18 Nagaland 10 19 9 19 Odisha 800 848 735 20 Punjab 608 716 746 21 Rajasthan 1745 1878 2042 22 Sikkim 9 12 7 23 Tamil Nadu 4427 4577 4712 24 Telangana 1458 1554 1586 25 Tripura 81 75 75 26 Uttarakhand 290 223 303 27 Uttar Pradesh 1959 2075 2131 28 West Bengal* 2938 2926 3241 29 A & N Islands 3 10 8 30 Chandigarh 23 28 28 31 D & N Haveli and Daman and Diu 21 29 24 32 Delhi 629 622 584 33 Jammu & Kashmir 131 158 144 34 Ladakh 4 1 4 35 Lakshadweep 0 0 0 36 Puducherry 46 42 72 Total 32825 35221 36526 Note: Data for 2024 is Provisional *Figures for West Bengal for the year 2024 have been re-cast based on the pattern of data furnished by the State Police Department for the year 2023 and the aggregate eDAR data of the State for the year 2024. *****