BENGALURU: The recent death of a 27-year-old techie in a road accident on Bengaluru-Mangaluru highway in Tumakuru district has once again raised several questions on safety of motorists on our highways. Experts from Indian Road Congress (IRC) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) opine that motorists must follow all prescribed norms while driving. They also feel that there is now a need to have more artificial intelligence cameras installed in multiple places along highways to penalise those over speeding.
“Usually motorists tend to slow down when they see a manual traffic interceptor vehicle and cruise through when the road is good. It is at these zones where most accidents occur. So, artificial intelligence cameras are the need of the hour,” an IRC official said.
While the speed limit on highways worldwide is 120 kmph, in India, the norm still prescribed is 80-100 kmph and the highways are designed for this speed. “But commuters ride at 160 kmph. It is the thrill which is the problem. So apart from awareness, traffic police and local police personnel should also be more alert and keep a tab on speed violations,” the official added.
A senior NHAI official said, “As a norm, it is our job to provide good roads. But that does not mean people should overspeed. The new vehicles are designed and marketed in such a way that vehicles’ speed can be increased from 0-100 kmph in 5-8 seconds. Also many real estate projects advertise stating ‘reach airport in 80 minutes’ or ‘reach Mysuru from Bengaluru in 90 min’. But no one talks about the speed they will be riding. Vehicle companies should also think about their social responsibilities.”
The NHAI official added that they cannot put speed breakers as it is not allowed on NHs. Also rubble strips are of no use when vehicles are zooming at 120 kmph. The speed breakers on NHs are put up by local administrations and residents near schools, hospitals and residential areas. “Accidents have also been noted on these stretches and NHAI cannot be blamed for it,” the official added.
DG&IGP Praveen Sood told TNIE, “Good roads do not mean safe roads. Over speeding is a big menace on highways. We all want good roads... but when roads are improved, the driver behaviour does not improve resulting in accidents. Good roads are not a licence for overspeeding and people should understand this.”