ROAD SAFETY LAWS IN INDIA: STRONG ON PAPER, WEAK IN ENFORCEMENT?

India has no shortage of road safety laws. The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, the 2019 Amendment, and related criminal provisions already create a detailed legal framework. The real problem lies in weak enforcement, poor infrastructure, unreliable data, and limited administrative capacity. This article examines the gap between law on paper and safety on the ground, showing how fines, liability rules, Good Samaritan protections, and institutional bodies have not translated into effective compliance. It also compares India’s reactive approach with preventive road safety models in countries such as Sweden, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan. Judicial intervention has helped, but courts cannot replace sustained governance. The article argues that reducing road deaths requires stronger enforcement, better crash data, centralized investigation, and genuine political will. India’s road safety crisis is therefore not a failure of law alone, but a failure to make law work.