COIMBATORE: Illegal advertisement hoardings installed on traffic signal poles across Coimbatore continue to remain despite the collector directing officials to remove them.
The hoardings, installed on traffic signal poles and within the road's Right of Way (RoW), are alleged to violate Indian Road Congress (IRC) guidelines. Activists have warned that such advertisements could distract motorists, obstruct visibility and increase the risk of accidents, particularly at busy junctions.
K Kathirmathiyon, secretary of Coimbatore Consumer Cause and a member of the Coimbatore District Road Safety Committee, said the advertisements were illegal and should be removed immediately.
"Advertisements at traffic signals can distract motorists and compromise road safety. Despite the collector directing the concerned officials to remove them, no effective action has been taken so far," he said.
Kathirmathiyon said IRC guidelines prohibit advertisements within the RoW of highways on safety grounds. The Tamil Nadu Highways Department had also issued directions in 2016 prohibiting advertisements within the RoW of state highways.
He further pointed out that the Madras High Court, in an order issued in 2017, had directed that road safety norms applicable to national highways should also be followed on state highways, including adherence to IRC guidelines on roadside advertisements.
He said the state had earlier removed commercial advertisements from traffic signal posts following the state's road safety policy formulated in 2007.
"Commercial establishments cannot be permitted to put up advertisements on traffic signal posts or across roads in a manner that affects road safety," he said, urging both national and state highways authorities to remove such hoardings.
Meanwhile, sources alleged that new traffic signals were being installed by the police and other officials at several locations where U-turns were already available, just for the sake of putting up advertisements and earning an inducement through them.
Officials have yet to respond to the allegations. Activists have urged the district administration to ensure that road safety regulations are enforced uniformly across the city.
