India, Oct. 13 -- Nearly 100 pedestrians die in road accidents every day in India. Against this backdrop, there is an urgent need to implement the directives on making Indian roads safe for those on foot - including compliance with the standards specified by the India Road Congress - issued by the Supreme Court earlier this month. Several aspects of road infrastructure, governance, and use need fixing if pedestrian deaths are to be brought down.

To start with, roads in India are designed with only vehicular traffic in mind: Pedestrians are an afterthought, as evident from the lack of functioning footpaths. The design problem is rooted in a capacity deficit, with very few people trained on designing with a holistic perspective on safety a...