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The official Indian accident statistics show that the number of road accidents and fatalities are one of the highest worldwide. These official statistics provide important facts about the current accident situation. It is suspected that for various reasons not all accidents are reported to the official statistic. This study estimates the degree of underreporting of traffic accidents with casualties in India. In order to get a national overview of the traffic accident situation it is necessary to improve the knowledge about underreported accidents. Therefore, the in-depth accident database of “Road Accident Sampling System India” (RASSI) was analyzed [1]. This project is organized by a consortium that has collected traffic accidents scientifically in four different regions since 2011 on the spot which have been reported either by police or by local hospitals and own patrol by RASSI engineers.

On the way to automated driving, the installation rate of surround sensing systems will rapidly increase in the upcoming years. The respective technical progress in the areas of driver assistance and active safety leads to a numerous and valuable information and signals to be used prior to, during and even after an accident. Car makers and suppliers can make use of this new situation and develop integrated safety functions to further reduce the number of injured and even deaths in car accidents. Nevertheless, the base occupant safety remains the core of this integrated safety system in order to ensure at least a state-of-the-art protection even in vehicles including partial, high or full automation. Current networked safety systems comprehend a point-to-point connection between single components of active and safety systems. The optimal integration requires a much deeper and holistic approach.

Anti-lock Braking Systems (ABS) for motorcycles have already contributed significantly to the safety of powered two-wheelers (PTW) on public roads by improving bike stability and controllability in emergency braking situations. In order to address further riding situations, another step forward has been achieved with Motorcycle Stability Control (MSC) system. By combining ABS, electronically combined braking system (eCBS), traction control and inertial sensors even in situations like braking and accelerating in corners the riders' safety can be improved. The MSC system controls the distribution of braking and traction forces using an algorithm that takes into account all available vehicle information from wheels, power train and vehicle attitude. With its ability to control fundamental vehicle dynamics, the MSC system will be a basis for further development and integration of comprehensive safety systems.

Motorized two wheelers, also known as powered two wheelers (PTW) are the most common mode of transportation in India. Around one in four deaths that occurred on the roads in India in 2012 involved a motorcyclist, according to Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. This constitutes the highest contributor for fatal accidents in India [1]. The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) analysis shows the risk of a motorcyclist having a fatal accident is 20 times greater than for a car driver travelling the same route [2]. An investigation conducted by Bosch looked at the accident database of Road Accident Sampling System for India (RASSI). This investigation revealed interesting facts about the Indian motorcycle accident situation, such as root causes of powered two wheeler collisions and riders behaviour including their braking patterns during the pre-crash phase of the accident.

In the year of 2012 in India the total number of accidents with injuries is registered by Ministry of Road Transport and Highway with 490,383 out of which injured people are 509,667 and fatalities are 138,258 [1]. Nearly 17% of the fatalities are occupants of passenger cars which constitute the second highest contributor for fatal accidents in India [1]. In order to understand the root causes for car accidents in India, Bosch accident research carried out a study based on in-depth accidents collected in India. Apart from other accident contributing factors e.g. infrastructure the driver behaviour and his actions few milliseconds just prior to the crash is an extremely important and a key valuable data for the understanding of accident causation. Further on it supports also the development of modern automotive safety functions. Hence this research was undertaken to evaluate the benefit of the state-of-the art vehicle safety systems known as Antilock Braking System (ABS).