New programme to make 100 high-risk intersections in Delhi safer for pedestrians

The Delhi government plans to redesign 100 high-risk intersections for pedestrian safety, following Supreme Court directives to enhance infrastructure.

The Delhi government will work towards redesigning and improving 100 high-risk intersection with a goal to make them safer for pedestrian movement, senior government officials said on Sunday. The project comes in wake of the Supreme Court orders last year mandating a comprehensive audit and improvement of pedestrian infrastructure.

New programme to make 100 high-risk intersections in Delhi safer for pedestrians

The Public Works Department, along with Delhi Traffic Police, will manage the Delhi Intersection Safety Programme. “The city’s top 100 high-risk intersections have been identified as priority sites for comprehensive safety improvements through design, traffic management, and enforcement measures. The proposed Delhi Intersection Safety Program aims to transform these critical locations into safer, more efficient, and accessible spaces for all users,” an order, issued by the PWD additional director general, said.

Intersections, in particular, represent some of the city’s most dangerous points for road users, where multiple conflict movements such as crossing, merging, and turning, create a heightened risk of crashing. In Delhi, nearly one in four fatal crashes occurs at major intersections.

“With pedestrians accounting for over one-fifth of all road fatalities, the directive underscores an urgent need to redesign streets for the millions who walk every day, especially women, children, the elderly, and persons with disabilities, who remain most vulnerable on unsafe streets,” the directive said. The PWD has now planned to redesign all these high-risk pedestrian crossings in Delhi. Besides pedestrian crossings, footpaths, foot overbridges (FOBs), and subways will also be made safer and accessible, PWD officials said.

A government official said that specifically, in terms of pedestrian accidents, the top high risk corridors with maximum deaths per kilometre include Baba Kharak Singh Marg-Dr RML Hospital to Connaught Place; Azadpur Chowk to Singhu Border; Delhi Gate Junction to Chatta Rail Junction; Dilshad Garden Metro Station to ISBT Kashmere Gate; and Punjabi Bagh Metro station to Tikri Border.

In Delhi, 1,640 pedestrians were hit in road crashes between Jan-Sept in 2025 in which 1,247 were injured, 464 lost their lives

Some of the intersection with maximum deaths due to accidents include Mukarba Chowk, Intersection of Outer Ring Road and Wazirabad Road near Signature Bridge; Majnu Ka Tila- Outer Ring Road Stretch; Azadpur Chowk; Intersection of Grand Trunk Road and Main Libaspur Road; Nirankari Chowk; Burari Chowk; Punjabi Bagh Chowk; Seelampur Chowk; Outer Ring Road- In front of Rohini Court; Madhuban Chowk; Intersection of DND Flyway and MG Marg; Dabri Crossing; Lokesh Cinema Bus stop at Nangloi; Shivaji Park Metro Station; Gazipur Roundabout and Mukundpur roundabout, govt reports show.

A PWD official said that from adding pedestrian crossing to speed calming measures, regulation of speed limits to table top crossing, a series of measures will be added to high risk areas. “Most of these pedestrian crossings are located in highly congested areas. The pedestrian crossing near the zoo on Mathura Road is one of them. The court has specifically ordered that the Mathura Road pedestrian crossing be redesigned first,” official added.

Officials say that the 100 pedestrian crossings identified for redesign will be redesigned according to Indian Road Congress (IRC) norms. PWD will be organizing training programme “Enabling Safer Streets in Delhi” for all its engineers posted in road construction and maintenance on January 17 as a part of the project. “It will coincide with Delhi launch of “Designing for Safe Speeds (DFSS) guide, which outlines practical, design-led strategies to help cities manage vehicle speeds and reduce crash severity,” the order added.