RDRP : Evaluating Infrastructure and traffic management around schools in Indian urban areas
According to UNICEF India has largest adolescent population (approximately 253 million) in the world, as per an article by Indian Road Federation (October, 2023) nearly 10% of all fatal accidents take place near unsafe school zones and over 80% of those incidents are due to preventable human errors and can be avoided. Areas around schools have most vulnerable users of transport system. Young children have different capabilities to perceive hazards of busy roadways and vehicular traffic then adults and that is why designing road infrastructure and managing traffic around schools are very crucial. Appropriate safety devise provision, proper operation of traffic and strict implementation of rules can ensure safety within school zones. This research will start with reviewing Indian guidelines, case studies from different countries and identifying factors affecting safety of children on roadways around schools of urban areas. Study of selected location and data collection (on site data, interviews with users, authorities and experts) will help in Identification of gap in provision of infrastructural & safety facilities and guidelines. Comparing existing condition and guidelines will help to evaluate school zone safety practices for Indian urban roads. Final outcome of this DRP (After sufficient data collection only) will be a paper.
