HYDERABAD: To ascertain the adequacy of all the required road infrastructure, pedestrian facilities and safety measures, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is planning to conduct Road Safety Audit on the existing main roads under the Comprehensive Road Maintenance Programme (CRMP). Despite various measures being taken up by the civic body, road accidents are occurring due to various reasons.
To start with, the GHMC plans to take up the audit by engaging a third-party agency to walk-through the 138-km-long road network in the five circles of the LB Nagar zone. The appointed consultant will conduct the field survey on all the major CRMP roads to ensure that each road has required highway infrastructure such as central median, proper signages at required places, road markings, speed breakers, lighting, pedestrian facilities such as footpath, zebra crossing, and traffic signals for the convenient movement of road users to and from all the legs of the intersection.
However, for the maintenance of main roads in the LB Nagar zone, the GHMC has allotted the contract to BSCPL Infrastructure Limited. The agency should deploy teams to conduct the survey to assess the existing condition of the road in respect to the road network, connectivity and road infrastructure by performing traffic analysis. They have also been asked to check if the central divider is present with the required height preventing pedestrians and vehicles from crossing abruptly and painted with reflective markings. Apart from that, the agency was asked to check for proper kerbing on footpaths, among other things.
Officials said the agency should suggest suitable measures to prevent road accidents by conducting the deficiency analysis derived from the observations on safety point of view and identify best practices being followed in other urban cities which are suitable to be adopted in the GHMC limits, they added.
Boost safety near nalas, orders KTR
To prevent accidents of people falling into nalas and storm water drains, MAUD Minister KT Rama Rao directed all major Urban local Bodies (ULBs) to have a safety audit extensively for nalas. The Minister stated that a few unfortunate incidents had been being reported despite all the precautionary measures. Senior officials will be held responsible if any untoward incident takes place in the future due to lack of safety measures near the nala in municipal corporations including the GHMC, he said.
Rama Rao a review meeting on the Strategic Nala Development Programme (SNDP) here on Tuesday where he directed authorities to expedite protection measures and nala development programmes before the ensuing monsoon. As a part of the exercise, officials need to identify places on the nalas that need to be strengthened and developed