Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019 barely enforced after Mumbai crash
India's big road safety law, the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019, was supposed to make officials answer for bad road design, but it's barely being enforced.
This came into focus after a tragic BMW crash on Mumbai's Coastal Road killed three students.
Investigations are stuck on speeding and alcohol, while whether the road itself was built safely isn't getting much attention.
Experts warn unscientific probes endanger pedestrians
Experts like Geetam Tiwari, professor emeritus at IIT Delhi's TRIP (Transportation Research and Injury Prevention Programme) Centre, say India talks about safer "forgiving" roads but rarely follows through.
Groups like Crashfree India and SaveLIFE Foundation point out that most crash probes aren't scientific because officials aren't trained for it.
With no clear rules or accountability for design failures, even after repeated accidents, engineering flaws keep putting lives at risk, especially for pedestrians who made up over 20% of road deaths in 2024.