An AI-enabled system being used to identify accident-prone stretches on National Highways could soon help states analyse crash patterns on state and local roads.
The Electronic Detailed Accident Report (eDAR) platform can help authorities identify where and how crashes are taking place and plan targeted road-safety interventions, the road transport and highways ministry said.
Its use on state and local roads will depend on the availability of relevant road data.
The proposal comes amid India’s continuing road safety challenge. A total of 4,87,707 road accidents claimed 1,77,175 lives in 2024. In 2023, the country had recorded 4,80,583 accidents and 1,72,890 deaths.
AI Has Flagged 6,000+ Highway Black Corridors
AI-based analysis of eDAR data is already being used on the National Highway network.
It has helped identify 6,358 “black corridors” covering more than 6,400km of highways. These accident-prone stretches recorded 37,164 deaths between 2023 and 2025.
A black corridor is a continuous highway stretch containing accident black spots- locations that have reported a specified number of crashes involving fatalities or serious injuries.
Tamil Nadu has the highest number of such corridors at 958, followed by Uttar Pradesh with 671 and Karnataka with 607.
The Centre now wants states to use similar data-driven tools to identify dangerous stretches on roads outside the National Highway network.
The system could help authorities decide where engineering changes, enforcement measures or other road-safety interventions are required.
Centre Offers Tech Platforms To States
The proposal was discussed at the two-day Chintan Shivir 2026 on highway infrastructure, which concluded at Ekta Nagar in Gujarat on Tuesday.
The Centre said platforms and systems such as PM GatiShakti, Data Lake, eDAR, contractor rating systems and Bhoomi Rashi could be made available for state-level use, along with technical support and capacity building.
The discussions also focused on improving the quality of road projects through stronger supervision and better assessment of DPR consultants, Authority Engineers and Independent Engineers.
The ministry said greater weight should be given to technical capability and past performance while selecting consultants and engineers.
States were also encouraged to explore BOT and annuity-based models used in National Highway projects for developing State Highways and expressways.
