Online law enforcement and more funds to improve road safety in the state

MUMBAI: Road safety has been strengthened across the state with every district set to receive ₹150 million for this purpose. Additionally, the state government has given the green light to the transportation department to step up surveillance of motorists through electronic law enforcement.

This district-wise allocation comes a year after the state government announced the creation of a road safety fund in view of the high number of road accidents and fatalities in Maharashtra. From the ₹15,000 crore allocated for 2025-26, each district will receive 1%, or ₹150 crore, to exclusively carry out road safety works and resolve problems on highways and arterial roads.

Last year, between January and November, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region recorded 4,935 road accidents, of which 2,319 occurred in Mumbai. Of the 1,108 deaths, 299 were reported from Mumbai. The state recorded 13,823 deaths from 32,801 road accidents during this period.

“Despite being approved, the Road Safety Fund has not gained traction due to the legislative elections and other administrative reasons. Now that the funds are allocated, 8-10 districts have formed teams to discuss road safety and measures to reduce accidents and fatalities,” said a senior transport department official.

At the district level, a team of five to seven members comprising district collectors or district magistrates, representatives of various government departments such as public works department, RTOs, superintendent of police and other parties Stakeholders will find ways to address location-specific road crashes and reduce fatalities. Currently, more than 1,000 blind spots have been identified in Maharashtra, as well as other road accident-prone areas. Other challenges that will be addressed are blind turns, cutting/pruning trees, filling potholes and correcting road geometry.

Technology to the rescue

A state proposal to monitor roads and highways through electronic application has been approved by the Centre. Regional Transport Office (RTO) sources said unlike in the past when data on road accidents and fatalities was not easily available, the use of advanced technologies can help track blind spots in districts and talukas. As this is a capital intensive project, priced at approximately ₹20,000 crore, the state had asked the Center to contribute financially.

“We had suggested a centrally sponsored project, which has received in-principle approval from the Indian government,” said a transport department official. The plan largely involves installation of more CCTV, better technology in RTOs, automatic driving tracks and adoption of artificial intelligence to improve road safety.

Border checkpoints to visit

To facilitate movement of heavy vehicles, the state government will remove checkposts meant for tankers, trailers and container trucks at the border. The state has 22 check posts on its border with the neighboring states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Goa, Telangana and Chhattisgarh. At these checkpoints, all vehicles, including commercial vehicles and cargo carriers entering the country, are screened.