Kochi: Despite strict measures, death due to road mishaps are on the rise, and Thiruvananthapuram district yet again tops the chart. Some 39,329 traffic accidents were reported across the state in 2016 and Ernakulam accounted for 6,211, followed by Thiruvananthapuram (5,440) and Thrissur (4,294). The total mishaps in 2015 and 2014 were 39,029 and 36, 318 respectively, according to latest figures released by the National Transportation Planning and Research Centre (Natpac).
"The Ernakulam district continued to record most number of mishaps. However, this time over, the maximum number of deaths was in Thiruvananthapuram -- 481 - as against 477 in Ernakulam. Road mishaps claimed 4,169 lives in the state in 2016 as against 4,052 in 2015 and 3,964 in 2014," a senior Natpac official said. Two-wheelers accounted for the most number of accidents in Ernakulam district - 4715 cases against 1850 car accidents.
Private buses were involved in 514 cases surpassing Kozhikode (484). The primary cause of mishaps was rash and drunken driving. There were 5,549 reckless driving cases as against just 46 cases of drink driving. The least number of accidents were, however, reported from Wayanad (656). The Natpac, in its study, has identified a total of 355 black spots (accident spots) across the state. Out of them, 75 are in Ernakulam followed by Malappuram (71) and Alappuzha (57).
