Hyderabad: A research paper authored by a city-based forensic scientist on road accidents and their causes has provided some interesting insights, including that most accidents occurred between 3 and 6 pm.
Dr T. Vikramaditya, assistant professor at the Malla Reddy Institute of Medical Sciences (MRIMS), conducted a retrospective study of road traffic accidents in Suraram, near Qutubullapur, between April and September 2016. The study focused on non-fatal accidents.
Of the 84 victims of road accidents brought to MRIMS during this time, more than half (52.96 per cent) were aged between 15 and 30. Nearly 52.38 per cent of the victims were involved in two-wheeler accidents, 25 per cent in four-wheeler, 11.90 per cent in three-wheeler, 7.14 per cent in bus, 3,57 per cent were involved in lorry and mini-lorry accidents. Half the injuries in two-wheeler accidents were sustained due to the skidding of the vehicle. Only 8.33 per cent of the cases were regarding driving under the influence of alcohol.
The data suggests that males were more likely to be caught in an accident. Seventy of the 84 injured were men. These figures correspond with other similar studies done in the past.
The study found that most accidents — 29.76 per cent — occurred between 3 pm and 6 pm every day. Dr Vikramaditya said, “While statistical data on things such as age and sex might correspond with similar studies, the time of accident is unique for each place. It is a function of factors that include the type of roads in that area and employment scenario. Hence, this figure will be different in a place like, say, Jubilee Hills.”
He said Suraram is located close to an industrial cluster (Jeedimetla), has a lot of colleges in the vicinity and close to crucial highways. “The 3 pm-6 pm slot seems to be when most students and employees return home. That is probably why we saw most accidents during this time,” he said.
Analysis of month-wise data revealed that accidents peaked during July. Dr Vikramaditya said this could be due to the increase in traffic post summer vacations.
