Report reveals India’s most dangerous driving times! It’s not rush hour

If you plan on driving a long distance, the time of day may matter more than you think. A new road safety study has found that the hours between 9 pm and 10 pm are the most dangerous on Indian roads, while the driving hours between 1 pm and 2 pm appear to be the safest. The findings come from the Indian Road Safety Report 2026 (IRSR) released by Zuno General Insurance.The report analyzed more than 4.5 million trips and more than 55 million kilometers of driving data and information from more than 27,000 active Zuno SmartDrive app users in 17 states.

Other key findings from the report:

Research shows that driving behavior remains relatively stable for most of the day but begins to deteriorate after 8 p.m. Between 9pm and 10pm, the average driving score dropped to 86 points, making it the most dangerous time for motorists. By comparison, drivers’ average score between 1 and 2 p.m. was 93, the highest of all time periods analyzed.The report also challenges some common assumptions about driving habits. Driving scores for women and men were almost identical, with women scoring 92.86 and men scoring 92.43. The findings suggest that driving behavior, rather than demographic factors, provides a clearer picture of road risk.Researchers found that sudden braking and sharp acceleration are the weakest aspects of Indian motorists’ driving behavior. Sudden braking received an average score of 87, while hard acceleration received an average score of 91. These habits are often associated with unsafe operations and increase the likelihood of an accident.Interestingly, seasonal changes have little effect on driving patterns. Average driving scores remained broadly consistent across summer, monsoon and winter, indicating that driver behavior has a greater impact on road safety than weather conditions.The report also highlights a larger problem. Survey results show that more than 80% of road accidents in India are caused by behavioral factors. This includes issues such as speeding, distracted driving and unsafe road behavior. Road safety remains a major challenge in the country. About 173,000 people die in road traffic accidents in India every year, accounting for nearly 11% of global road traffic fatalities. The economic impact is also significant, with the cost of road accidents estimated at 3 to 5 percent of the country’s GDP. Nearly two-thirds of the deaths were among those aged 18 to 45.The report also noted that vulnerable road users continue to be the most affected. In India, two-wheeler fatalities account for 44% of all road fatalities, while pedestrians account for nearly 19% of fatalities.