KOCHI: The rising number of container lorries and trailers on the state and national highways has become a major cause of concern as nearly 80 per cent of these vehicles are overloaded and ply in the night with only a single driver.
In 2019 (till September), 57 accidents involving container lorries and trailers were reported, killing 16 and grievously injuring 35 persons. Though several campaigns for container carrier drivers have highlighted the importance of proper rest and sleep in between long journeys, the drivers continue to give scant regard to it and engage themselves in non-stop driving to make extra bucks.
Indian Institute of Road Safety director Upendra Narayanan said the majority of the containers that ply on Indian roads are overloaded and the drivers never object to it, though they experience poor stability while driving overloaded vehicles.“Overweight containers are becoming a serious problem as it adversely affects the stability of the vehicle, causing accidents on highways,” he said.
“In Thursday’s accident, the driver of the container carrier might have lost control of the vehicle either due to overweight or having fallen asleep,” he said.
Cochin Container Carrier Owners Welfare Association secretary Tomy Thomas said they insist that the drivers must avoid driving during the night, especially between 2am and 4am. “But container truck drivers usually opt for driving during the night as the traffic is less. We are also planning to approach the state to bring in a guideline to ensure that there are two drivers in container carriers,” he said, adding that the majority of the drivers do not take another driver or a helper along with them on long journeys.“They do it to claim additional money,” he said.
Tomy said there are no specific guidelines to regulate the overloading of containers, which mostly arrive overloaded in ports. “Shippers overload the containers because of poor control. They just try to use maximum space in the container,” said the owner of a container carrier.While a driver earns 12 per cent of the total fare charged for a journey, a helper gets six per cent. “Normally, the driver does not take a helper along with him to claim the additional six per cent,” said a source.
