An attempt to reduce the number of road crash
fatalities on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway
About Mumbai-Pune Expressway
The Mumbai–Pune Expressway is a controlled-access highway that connects Mumbai, the commercial capital of India, to the neighbouring city of Pune, an educational and information technology hub. This divided 6-lane roadway is an alternative to the old Mumbai–Pune highway and helps in reducing travel time between the two cities. It has a speed limit of 80 km/h along most parts of the stretch. Officially, two-wheelers and three-wheelers are not permitted to use most parts of the expressway. Common vehicle types plying on the expressway are cars, trucks and buses. The expressway is 94.6 km long and witnesses a large number of traffic crashes, fatalities and serious injuries.
What is the Zero Fatality Corridor?
The Zero Fatality Corridor (ZFC) is a pioneering attempt to build a replicable model for road safety that can be implemented on any road. The aim of the initiative is to reduce the number of road crash fatalities on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway (MPEW) from an annual average of 140 to 0 by the year 2020, which marks the end of the UN Decade Of Action For Road Safety.
The ZFC initiative is executed by implementing a 360 degree road safety solution across the 4 E’s of Road Safety – Engineering, Enforcement, Emergency Care and Education. The initiative is lead by SaveLIFE Foundation (SLF) with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) support of Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) in partnership with Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) the owners of the Expressway and the Government of Maharashtra.
Together SLF, M&M, MSRDC and the Government of Maharashtra officially launched the initiative on February 22nd, 2016 through signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) committing to the success of the initiative up to 2020.
Features of the Initiative
Make the road infrastructure more forgiving by implementing a Safe System Approach to Road Engineering and Design.
Enhance Enforcement by using technology and proven international best practices
Establish a “Chain of survival” by improving on-ground care, ambulatory care and in-hospital care for injured road crash victims.
Implement Education campaigns to build ownership of the initiative among the users of the MPEW.