Author : T.Sivakumar and R.Krishnaraj

Improving vehicle safety is a key strategy used in addressing international and national road casualty reduction targets and in achieving a safer road traffic system. Vehicle safety addresses the safety of all road users and currently comprises measures to help avoid a crash (crash avoidance) or reduce injury in the event of a crash (crash protection).Road traffic injuries are a major but neglected global public health problem, requiring concerted efforts for effective and sustainable prevention. Of all the systems that people have to deal with on a daily basis, road transport is the most complex and the most dangerous. Worldwide, the number of people killed in road traffic crashes each year is estimated at almost 1.2 million, while the number injured could be as high as 50 million – the combined population of five of the world’s large cities. What is worse, without increased efforts and new initiatives, the total number of road traffic deaths worldwide and injuries is forecast to rise by some 65% between 2000 and 2020 [1,2], and in low-income and middle-income countries deaths are expected to increase by as much as 80%. Improving vehicle safety is a key strategy used in addressing international and national road casualty reduction targets and in achieving a safer road traffic system. In the computer era the technology had grown leaps and bounds in almost all the fields. So many advanced vehicular safety equipment are available in the market to select from. This paper analyse about some of the advanced vehicular safety features, its implications and importance of having them in the vehicles and the need of making some mandatory.

Key words: Road Traffic Accidents, Accident prevention, Ignition Interlocks, Drunken Driving, Active and Passive Safety

Article published in International Journal of Current  Engineering  and Technology, Vol.3,No.2 (June- 2013)