Speed, Reckless Driving or Faulty Roads? Gujarat Sees 28% Surge in Road Accident Injuries

Ahmedabad alone accounted for nearly 16,700 accident victims as overspeeding and mobile phone use while driving continue to fuel the rise

Gujarat recorded a sharp rise in road accident injuries during the first six months of 2026, with more than 1.10 lakh people injured across the state, a 28.3% increase compared to the corresponding period last year.

Data from the state's emergency response service EMRI 108 showed that 1,10,942 people were injured in road accidents between January and June this year, up from 86,469 during the same period in 2025.

The figures translate to an average of nearly 25 people being injured in road accidents every hour across Gujarat.

Ahmedabad Tops Accident List

Ahmedabad reported the highest number of road accident injuries in the state, recording 16,667 cases during the six-month period, compared to 13,960 during the corresponding period last year, marking an increase of 19.39%.

The city witnessed an average of around 92 road accident injuries every day during the period under review.

Officials attributed the increase largely to overspeeding, distracted driving and the growing use of mobile phones behind the wheel.

Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot Follow

Surat recorded the second-highest number of accident injuries with 10,994 cases, followed by Vadodara with 6,712 and Rajkot with 5,411.

Kutch registered the steepest rise among the major districts, with accident injuries increasing by 53.59% from 2,601 cases in the first half of 2025 to 3,995 this year.

Valsad, Dahod and Anand also recorded increases of more than 30% during the period.

District-wise Road Accident Injuries (January-June)

Fatality Rate Reaches Five-Year High in Gujarat

An analysis of five years of road accident data has revealed that Gujarat recorded its highest fatality rate in 2024, with deaths accounting for 49.5% of all road accidents reported in the state.

Road Accidents Decline Despite Rise in Fatality Ratio

Despite the increase in the fatality rate, the total number of road accidents in Gujarat fell by 4.7% compared to 2023, according to the National Crime Records Bureau's (NCRB) Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India (ADSI) report.

Ahmedabad Records Sharp Drop in Fatalities

Ahmedabad, which recorded the highest number of road deaths in the state in 2023 with 535 fatalities, saw the figure decline to 410 in 2024, marking a reduction of 23%. Road accident cases in the city also fell by 10.2%, while the fatality rate dropped from 30.2% in 2023 to 25.8% in 2024.

Five-Year Fatality Trend in Gujarat

• 2020: 46.2%
• 2021: 49.0%
• 2022: 48.3%
• 2023: 48.0%
• 2024: 49.5% (highest in five years)

Multiple Factors Influence Accident Severity

Road safety experts said accident fatalities are influenced by a combination of factors including vehicle type, road design, traffic management and emergency response systems.

Emergency Response Improving Survival Chances

Experts noted that the dynamic deployment of EMRI 108 ambulances based on accident hotspots has improved emergency response times and increased the chances of survival for accident victims.

Overspeeding Remains the Biggest Killer

According to the NCRB report, nearly 96% of road fatalities in Ahmedabad in 2024 were linked to overspeeding. However, investigators noted that road accidents are often the result of multiple factors, including:

• Driver fatigue
• Poor road conditions
• Adverse weather
• Distracted driving
• Traffic management issues
• Vehicle condition and type