Highway hypnosis or sleepiness during driving has emerged as the biggest cause of accidents on the Samruddhi Mahamarg, accounting for 98 accidents or 27 per cent of the total 358 accidents reported between the period of its inauguration on December 11, 2022, and April 30 this year, showed data compiled by the state highway police.
Hypnosis-related accidents have resulted in nine casualties out of the total 39 people killed on the highway over the five-month period.
Admitting that they are aware of the issue, the state highway police said they are in the process of taking up remedial measures such as putting up flags and reflectors alongside highways to effectively curb such incidents.
As per data, 143 people were critically injured while 236 received minor injuries in the total 358 accidents that have occurred on the Samruddhi Mahamarg since it was opened for public use in December last year.
After highway hypnosis, overspeeding and tyre bursting are the other two major causes of accidents on the Samruddhi Mahamarg. Overspeeding has been the biggest reason for fatalities, accounting for as many as 11 deaths. The police have recorded 68 cases of over-speeding in these five months, in which 72 people have been injured, including 19 grievously injured.
“We would soon be putting up rumblers and taking other measures to bring effective checks on speeding cases and reduce accidents,” said Additional Director General of Police ( Highway Traffic Maharashtra State) Ravindra Singal.
The highway police have observed that 55 accidents on the Samruddhi Highway occurred due to tyre bust incidents, which killed nine people.
Explaining highway hypnosis, an officer from the state highway police said it is a phenomenon that motorists usually experience during long, uninterrupted drives on highways. It occurs when the motorists are continuously driving for hours without any breaks and because of the monotonous route, the driver zones out while driving.
The officer said drivers specially experience highway hypnosis on smooth, empty highways and the feeling is like sleeping with open eyes and a brief disconnect with the outer world.
Many motorists have experienced highway hypnosis on the newly constructed 520km-long Samruddhi Expresssway connecting Nagpur to Shirdi. Since the highway is new, there are no hoardings or billboards on the roadsides or hotels/dhabas that would distract a driver’s mind. This can sometimes lead to serious accidents.
“Due to continuous driving on a monotonous stretch for long hours, the drivers kind of get hypnotised and sometimes lose control and reach a state when there is a temporary disconnect between the brain and body’s action. This results in the driver losing control of the vehicle and leads to accidents ,” said Singal.
By the time hoardings come up or other amenities or activities alongside the highway come in place, the state highway police have decided to come up with a slew of measures to curb accidents resulting from motorists experiencing highway hypnosis.
One of the proposed measures includes putting up flags after every half an hour-long stretch. The highway police said it’s a simple yet effective measure and is in the process of being implemented in a week’s time.
“The flags would be of yellow and white colors. Besides this, reflectors are also being put in place to catch the motorist’s attention and keep their brains busy and active and prevent accidents,” Singal said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 520km stretch of the Samruddhi Mahamarg (Phase 1) between Shirdi and Nagpur on December 11, 2022.
Now, the Phase 2 of the highway stretching from Bharvir village in Igatpuri taluka to Shirdi will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis on May 26.
The remaining 100km stretch up till Vadpe in Thane will be completed by the end of this year or by March next year. The project is being implemented by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC).