Over all highway roads are now good, four tracks lane, somewhere six tracks lane, express high way and due to modern vehicle technology cars and trucks speeding above 80 km and up. We see cars and trucks parked on the side of the highway without any reflector sign, back of the vehicle. As specially trucks, state govt. buses, private luxury buses, few of them, do not have back light working or do not have enough red color stickers reflectors on the back side of the vehicle. During night time such trucks and buses are dangerous vehicle running on highway. Also I have seen breakdown side parked such big vehicles which do not use back lights or caution reflector stand or have no red color stickers enough to cover the back side of the vehicle. I seen Govt. state buses plying on road in such conditions.
During the night time, private passenger cars speeding at on average speed of 100 km. These dangerous vehicles are main cause of the highway accidents. The car driver can not see heavy vehicle parked in the night or such vehicle running on road at night. There are many fatal accidents on highway where cars have head on collision with such vehicles during night, the car just slide below inside the truck or heavy vehicle and the passengers die on the spot.
1. For this, on every toll tax entry, there should be some volunteer agency who stop such vehicles and stick the enough strips of safety reflector strips on the backside of such vehicles.. Lions Clubs and Rotary Clubs and other Social Organization, do such project but is not the regular practice. I also was President of Lions Club, did some projects on road safety. Practically not possible on permanent and regular basis. We did projects for awareness of road safety not to implement by force.
2. Instead RTO or Toll Tax contractor should be authorized for fine, penalty if such vehicles are without back lights, without red color strips enough to alert other vehicles.
They should give such services regularly on permanent basis. There should be penalty, fine and cost of red color reflector strips etc should be charged to that vehicle. Toll Tax Authorities shall be legally authorized for such job by Govt. mutual understanding.
Concern Govt. department should think seriously to implement this. I think the accident on highway may be prevented which the main cause as mentioned above.
Over and above there are other safety measures need like heavy vehicle should run on the 3 rd lane and over taking vehicle, over take from the first lane. There are Notice and Caution Boards on Highways that heavy vehicles and public carriers should run on the extreme left lane but they never run like this. They run in the first lane only. So other vehicles have to over take from the wrong side. This also is the reason of accidents.
This must be enforcing by law and by CCTV camera on highways. In the city, we have now CCTv cameras on prime locations, but the same should be on as specially on highways with central traffic police control room.
Madhukar Bhatt
Ahmedabad
