India’s first mobile road collision investigation and research laboratory has been launched in Delhi, with the support of the FIA Foundation.
The CrashLab is a Toyota Qualis jeep equipped with state of the art camera equipment, distance/speed measurement devices, a breath alcohol analyzer, GPS and assorted gauges and tools for accident scene investigation, including PC Crash and ViaNet, software packages for processing collision data and reconstructing crashes. As it will operate on official police business, the CrashLab is also equipped with a siren, PA announcer and police radio. The CrashLab will be operated by the Indian Institute of Road Traffic Education (IRTE), an Indian road safety NGO dedicated to raising the profile of road traffic injuries and improving road safety education and training, in conjunction with the Delhi highway police. It joins the IRTE’s fleet of ‘Interceptor’ vehicles which operate on Indian roads in partnership with the police and are used for enforcement, education and monitoring. Co-funded by IRTE and the FIA Foundation, the CrashLab is intended to begin the process of improving post-accident analysis in India.
Currently only 400,000 of the estimated 1.4 million serious road crashes in India are officially recorded, and a tiny percentage is scientifically investigated. In the absence of analysis the causes of crashes can only be guessed at and remedial solutions cannot be based on evidence. The IRTE CrashLab will be used for accident investigation, but also for training police investigators and supporting official investigations. The CrashLab will have a four person crew, including a police driver, a cameraman, technical investigator and a police officer.
The CrashLab was launched in Delhi on 8th January 2005 by IRTE President Rohit Baluja; Dhanendra Kumar, Government Secretary for Shipping, Road Transport & Highways; Dr K.K. Paul, Commissioner of Delhi Police; and David Ward, FIA Foundation Director General.
David Ward said: ‘The FIA Foundation is delighted to be able to support this new crash analysis laboratory. Crash research is vital if we are to understand and deal with the causes of road crashes on every level: vehicle performance and crashworthiness, road infrastructure and human behaviour. IRTE is blazing a trail for road safety in India. The value of its work in raising the profile of road safety, and in investing in the expertise of the police, public officials, teachers and road users, is incalculable and we are delighted to be partners with IRTE in promoting safer roads in India’.