Delhi Buses’ Safety Record Under Scrutiny Amid Rising Accidents

In 2024-25, public transport buses in Delhi, particularly those operated by the Delhi Transport Corporation, were involved in around 150 accidents, including 40 fatal incidents, raising serious road safety concerns. Contributing factors include traffic-rule violations, poorly-trained drivers, over-speeding, and mechanical failures.

Delhi's public transport system faces scrutiny as buses were involved in around 150 accidents, including 40 fatal crashes, in 2024-25, spotlighting road safety issues.

The Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) recorded 97 road accidents in the period, 21 of which were fatal, resulting in significant loss of life and passenger injuries, as per city government data.

Key causes of these accidents were identified as traffic-rule violations, absence of dedicated bus lanes, inadequate driver training, over-speeding, and mechanical failures.

A tragic incident in June 2025 involved two DTC buses, leading to one fatality and two injuries near the Shadipur depot. Another incident in August claimed the life of an autorickshaw driver in Shakarpur.

A series of accidents in the following months included a DTC bus colliding with a school van, e-rickshaw, and two-wheeler in Vishwas Nagar, injuring three, including a child, and a wrong-side driving incident resulting in injuries in West Delhi, involving a car and an autorickshaw.

Data revealed that while 15 accidents were considered major, the majority, 61, were minor. These involved 12-metre-long standard low-floor DTC buses, which are prone to crashes amidst heavy traffic and poor lane discipline in congested city parts.

Additionally, Delhi Integrated Multi Modal Transit System (DIMTS) cluster buses were implicated in 50 accidents in the same period, with 40 percent being fatal, underlining the chronic safety issues in Delhi's bus operations.