Road accidents increase in AP by 20%

VISHAKAPATNAM: Road accidents in Andhra Pradesh increased by 20 per cent, according to the latest data released by the NCRB for 2021. As many as 8,946 people lost their lives in 22,311 traffic accidents in 2021 and the state stood eighth place in the country in the number of deaths in such mishaps.

According to the report, there were 21,556 road accidents and 755 railway accidents and no mishap linked to railway level crossings. These mishaps caused 8,186 and 760 deaths, respectively in 2021.

Road accidents increased by 20.3 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020. The road accidents claimed 8,186 lives and caused injuries to 21,040 persons. The data also revealed that 8,241 road accidents were reported on national highways in the state in 2021, leaving 3,602 dead and 8,323 injured.

Over-speeding was responsible for 16,631 accidents in the state in 2021 that claimed 6,371 lives and injured 16,188.

A total of 7,039 people were killed and 19,675 injured in 17,924 road accidents in Andhra Pradesh in 2020. The deaths in road crashes have increased by over 16 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020.

There were several reasons for the increasing number of road crashes and deaths. The speed limit of the vehicles on the NH and state highways is 80 to 100 kmph but most motorists exceed this limit often, leading to road crashes, said an officer with the traffic police here.

The victims in road accidents were mostly two-wheeler riders. A total of 4,166 of them were killed and 10,349 two-wheeler riders were injured in the crashes in the state in 2021.