pass On Wednesday, more than 10 vehicles collided on the Delhi-Agra National Highway-91. Around thirty people were injured in this accident. This accident occurred due to dense fog and mist. Such accidents occur daily in winter.
According to the report “Road Accidents in India-2022” of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, there were 34,262 road accidents due to smog and fog in 2022. Of them, 14,583 people died and 30,796 people were injured.
While in 2021, the number of road accidents caused by fog and haze was 28,934. Among them, 13,372 people died and 25,360 people were injured.
Every year the number of road accidents increases due to haze and fog in winter. In such a situation, one must be extremely careful while driving.
So, today in important news we will talk about why the number of road accidents increases in winter? You will also learn that-
What are the things to keep in mind while driving in fog? What mistakes should you not make while driving in fog?
Expert: Veer Bahadur Singh, Traffic Officer, Jalaun, Uttar Pradesh
Question – Why do road accidents increase in winter? Answer – One of the main reasons for the increase in road accidents in winter is mist and fog, in which visibility is very poor. As a result, the driver does not see the vehicle in front of him after a few meters, which becomes the cause of accidents.
Especially in some northern Indian states, there is dense fog during the months of December and January, where visibility reaches zero. In such a situation, news of road accidents emerges every day. Apart from this, there are many other reasons as well. See it in the graph below-
Question: What things should you keep in mind before driving in fog? Answer: No one wants to leave the house in the freezing cold. However, some people have to travel several kilometers every day to reach the office or for their important work. In such a situation, driving in thick fog and slippery roads is no less than a challenge.
Hands and feet begin to become numb from the cold. The cold also affects your car. It is therefore important to check certain things before taking your vehicle out of the house. Thus, road accidents can be avoided to a large extent. Understand this from the graph below.
Question: What things should be kept in mind when driving in fog or mist? Answer: Fog is the most difficult weather to drive. Nothing is clearly visible on the road in this season. Often nothing is visible on the road after 1-2 meters. Only fog is visible on the road.
Therefore, extra precautions should be taken while driving this season. Especially when crossing a highway, expressway or road without signals. For this, some important tips related to road safety must be adopted, so that we can drive safely and avoid road accidents. Understand this from the graph below-
Now let us understand some of the points given in the graph in detail.
Drive only in your lane. Traffic lanes on national roads are determined based on vehicles with two or four wheels or larger. Its importance further increases when visibility is reduced in fog. Accidents can be significantly reduced by moving vehicles onto designated lanes. So always drive in your own lane. With this, not only can you drive safely, but you can also ensure the safety of other drivers.
Keep your headlights on low beam in fog. The vehicle’s headlights must remain on low beam in fog. The low beam lights provide lighting between 50 and 75 meters in front of the vehicle. At the same time, the light spreads across the main beam, so that nothing is visible ahead in the fog.
Keep the defogger on to prevent fogging of the mirrors. In winter, the temperature outside and inside the car are different. As a result, fog begins to accumulate on the vehicle’s windshield. This reduces visibility. The defogger prevents the mirrors from fogging. Therefore, the defogger should be left on when driving in fog.
Don’t try to overtake. It is not okay to rush into the fog. Therefore, drive only in your lane. Do not try to pass other vehicles.
Maintain a sufficient distance from vehicles in front of you. In dense fog, maintain a greater distance than usual from vehicles in front of you, so that you have enough chance to recover if the vehicle in front brakes suddenly. Many accidents also occur because of this.
Question: How fast is it safe to drive in fog? Answer: Traffic official Veer Bahadur Singh says that in dense fog, the vehicle should not travel at a speed higher than 40 kilometers per hour.
Question: What types of mistakes should you avoid making while driving in fog? Answer – There are some mistakes that should not be made while driving in fog. Such as-
Avoid parking your vehicle on the side of the road in fog. In an emergency, turn on the parking lights and hazard lights 10 seconds before turning a corner. Keep the vehicle’s windshield and windows clean.
..
The central government is preparing to launch a road safety audit. This will identify and remove blackheads. …