What if technology could help authorities figure out where road accidents are most likely to happen before more lives are lost? Well, India is already using an AI-enabled system on its National Highways to identify accident-prone stretches, and the Centre now wants states to use similar technology on state and local roads. Scroll on to know more about this.
India Is Using AI Tool To Find Accident-Prone National Highways
According to NDTV, the system, known as Electronic Detailed Accident Report (eDAR), analyses accident data to help authorities understand where crashes are happening and identify stretches that need immediate road-safety interventions. The idea is simple: instead of waiting for a road to become a repeated accident hotspot, data can help identify dangerous stretches and guide authorities on where changes are needed.
The technology is already being used across the National Highway network, where AI-based analysis of eDAR data has identified 6,358 “black corridors” covering more than 6,400 kilometres.
These stretches recorded 37,164 deaths between 2023 and 2025, highlighting just how serious the road-safety problem can be on certain sections of the highway network.
A “black corridor” refers to a continuous stretch of highway containing accident black spots — locations where a specified number of crashes involving fatalities or serious injuries have been reported.
Tamil Nadu currently has the highest number of identified black corridors at 958, followed by Uttar Pradesh with 671 and Karnataka with 607.
Also Read: Your Road Trips In India Will Get Cheaper Thanks To This New NHAI Rule
How Can AI Help Make Roads Safer?
The idea isn’t that AI will somehow prevent an accident on its own. Instead, it can help authorities understand where and why crashes are happening by analysing available accident data.
This information can then be used to decide where changes such as better road engineering, stronger enforcement or other safety measures may be needed.
The Centre is now looking at extending this data-driven approach beyond National Highways. However, its use on state and local roads will depend on whether sufficient and relevant road data is available.
The proposal was discussed during the two-day Chintan Shivir 2026 on highway infrastructure, which concluded at Ekta Nagar in Gujarat.
The Centre has said that technology platforms including PM GatiShakti, Data Lake and eDAR, among others, could be made available to states along with technical support and capacity building.
If adopted more widely, the use of AI and accident data could give states another way to identify dangerous roads and decide where safety improvements are needed.
Cover Image Courtesy: Canva Pro/creatoroflove (representative image)
FAQs
What is the AI tool being used on India’s National Highways?
The AI tool analyses accident-related data through the Electronic Detailed Accident Report (eDAR) system to help identify accident-prone stretches on National Highways.