Kerala High Court asks road safety authorities for practical steps, not a formal counter

17 October 2026

A Division Bench of Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V. and Justice K.V. Jayakumar, hearing a suo motu writ petition on road safety along with WP(C) 35016/2026, asked the authorities for urgent practical solutions and said its earlier directions must be carried out without delay.
The Bench said it wanted practical suggestions rather than a formal counter-affidavit, and indicated it may modify its earlier order, which it described as a skeleton; it offered to speak to the Transport Commissioner and said respondent officers who wish to appear may do so in person or virtually.
It suggested an expert management team to find alternatives to fixed bus timings, saying timings will not work, and noted that while AI cameras detect violations there is no adequate follow-up, so incidents spotted on camera should be communicated and stopped.
The Court referred to the recent Mini Cooper accident at Nedumbassery, Kochi, in which three people died, noting that an AI camera had recorded the car being driven at very high speed and that there should be a way to stop such driving.
KSRTC, NHAI, NATPAC and Keltron were represented by counsel, the amicus curiae is Prem Kamath D., and the next hearing is on 3 November at 1.45 pm. The earlier directions include a State-wide, GIS-enabled Integrated Road Safety Monitoring Platform.