BENGALURU: It may take a while before Vibhuti Nath can gather himself to book a cab ride. The shock and trauma of a recent near-death experience still hangs heavy on him. Reason: The Ola cab driver who wouldn’t hang up on a phone call eventually rammed the vehicle into a passing car in AECS Layout near Marathahalli.
Nath escaped with a few scratches on his leg but his wife sustained a head injury and a child travelling in the other vehicle also suffered injuries.
Following the accident, Nath posted on Facebook, “Since the day I arrived to Bangalore I have noticed drivers (Uber, Ola, auto or buses) to be always conversing with someone while driving. I haven’t noticed this in any other city I have lived so far. This practice is considered as a criminal offence in most parts of India. Is there no law in place in Bangalore to tackle this? Who will take responsibility of the pain that my wife is suffering today? (sic)”
Ola was unavailable for comment.
What’s worrying is that this is not an isolated instance. The practice of talking on mobile phones while driving is common among many cab drivers.
In response to Nath’s post on Facebook, Vikas Singh, a regular commuter, wrote, “I have seen this too. While travelling to airport my Ola driver was continuously on phone ... surprisingly RTO ppl rarely stop and fine them (sic).”
Bengaluru Traffic Police records however suggest that the number of people caught for using mobile phones while driving has reduced from 2,70,151 in 2015 to 2,53,041 in 2016.
R Hithendra, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic), admitted that cab drivers using mobile phones while driving has remained a menace. “We book nearly 1,000 cases every day against cab drivers for violations such as using cellphones while driving and for not wearing uniforms.”
Sources say traffic police are finding it difficult to nab motorists as many drivers now use bluetooth headsets or bluetooth-enabled speakers.
Hithendra says any form of cellphone use, including handsets, bluetooth headsets or bluetooth-enabled speakers, is not allowed and drivers can be booked.
Under Section 177 of the Indian Motor Vehicles Act and Section 230A of the Karnataka Motor Vehicles Rules, a fine of `100 can be imposed on anyone caught using his/her mobile phone while driving/riding a vehicle.However, it is also not clear if it is legal to use GPS devices for navigation while driving as these could also prove to be a distraction.