Kerala makes blind spot mirrors mandatory on heavy vehicles

Amid growing concerns over road safety, particularly involving pedestrians, two-wheeler riders, and pillion passengers, Kerala has decided to make installation of blind spot mirrors on all heavy vehicles, including buses and trucks, mandatory. The move comes in the wake of reports indicating that a significant proportion of accidents involving heavy vehicles occur within the drivers’ blind spots, which are areas not visible through standard mirrors, often leading to fatal accidents.

Speaking to The Hindu, Transport Commissioner C.H. Nagaraju said that a majority of pedestrian and two-wheeler rider deaths involving buses or trucks occur due to blind spots of heavy vehicle drivers. “Considering the fact that around three-fourths of the road accident victims in the State, where as many as 3,875 people were killed in 48,841 accidents in 2024, are motorcyclists and pedestrians, the move is expected to reduce the number of fatal accidents and enhance overall road safety,” he said.

“A blind spot mirror costs only a few hundred rupees. The latest manufactured heavy vehicles come with blind spot mirrors and rear side view cameras for safety. The cameras are activated the moment the vehicle is about to roll. However, heavy vehicles whose body is built separately do not have these cameras or blind spot mirrors. So, the current move will ensure that all the heavy vehicles will have blind spot mirrors,” said Mr. Nagaraju.

Training to be provided

All the Road Transport Offices (RTOs) have been directed to provide proper training regarding the use of blind spot mirrors to all drivers of stage carriages, heavy goods vehicles, heavy passenger vehicles, educational institution buses, contract carriages, etc. The State Transport Authority (STA) meeting also instructed the motor vehicle inspectors (MVIs) and assistant MVIs who conduct driving tests to ensure that candidates are well aware of using blind spot mirrors during the road test. A guideline for all driving schools will be issued to educate learners about the usage of blind spot mirrors before presenting them for driving tests.

“Similarly, when passengers alighting from buses tend to cross the road too close to the stationary vehicle, there is a possibility of them remaining hidden from the driver’s view, often resulting in fatal accidents. Students too cross the the road the same way at times. Similarly, two-wheeler riders, if they get too close to a heavy vehicle, risk losing balance even by a small nudge to their bike and fall, often directly into the blind spot near the rear left wheel. This triangular blind zone is typically invisible to the heavy vehicle driver,” said Mr. Nagaraju.

Not only heavy vehicle drivers, but pedestrians, two-wheeler riders, and passengers too must be aware of this, and vulnerable road users must behave in a very defensive manner on the road in the presence of a heavy vehicle. Drivers of heavy vehicles must also adopt defensive driving to protect the vulnerable road users, said authorities.