Kottayam: Most road accidents in Kerala occurred between 6 and 8 pm, according to data compiled by the State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB). Within these two hours, the most crucial time was from 6 to 7 pm, it said.
Besides a rise in traffic in the evenings, the number of drunk drivers also goes up during this time, transport commissioner K Padmakumar.
Other major causes were the use of high beams and mobile phones while driving. More than a thousand people died in two-wheeler accidents every year -- 1,371 in 2017; 1,474 in 2016; and 1,305 in 2015. The number of those injured in two-wheeler accidents touched 45,805 in the past three years.
Private buses were responsible for 394 accidents in 2017, claiming 430 lives and injuring 3,447. In 2016, the number of people who died in bus accidents stood at 527. In accidents involving KSRTC buses, 213 people died in 2017 and 168 in 2016. 'Unknown' vehicles caused 65 accidents in 2017. Sixty-six people lost their lives and 138 were injured in such accidents. In 2016, the number of people who died in accidents involving such vehicles was 106, and in 2015 it was 86.