TIRUCHY: Using mobile phones while driving emerged as the major reason for driving licence suspensions in Tiruchy district between January 2025 and January 2026, with enforcement agencies suspending more than 800 licences for the same, according to official data. A consolidated review of suspension records from the Tiruchy East, Tiruchy West and Srirangam Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) indicates that a total of 3,576 driving licences were suspended during the year for offences.
After mobile phone use (802 cases), signal violations followed closely with 788 suspensions, highlighting widespread non-compliance at key junctions. Officials said this trend persisted despite the deployment of 29 Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras within city limits to detect traffic violations. Among the three RTO jurisdictions, Srirangam RTO – which also covers Lalgudi, Thuraiyur and Musiri – recorded the highest number of suspensions at 1,487, marginally ahead of Tiruchy West with 1,483 cases. Tiruchy East reported 606 suspensions, significantly lower than the other two regions.
A transport department official said that licence suspension was increasingly being used as a preventive measure against repeat offenders. “Drivers involved in serious violations are now being identified through digital challans, ANPR camera footage and court records.”
A senior traffic police officer said enforcement priorities were aligned with accident patterns. “Mobile phone use, drunken driving and signal jumping consistently feature in fatal crash investigations. Licence suspension is intended to act as a deterrent and temporarily remove high-risk drivers from the road,” the officer said, adding that many motorists were unaware that using headsets while driving is also treated as a violation.
P Ayyarappan, a road safety activist, said violations such as wrong-side driving were often underreported due to inadequate road infrastructure. “At several junctions, lane markings are either faded or unclear. For instance, at the Kalaignar Arivalayam signal, the markings are barely visible, leading to confusion and frequent violations,” he said. He added that helmet enforcement also needed to be strengthened, noting that riders without helmets were still commonly seen even on arterial roads.