Though fatalities are limited, road accidents are on the rise within the city limits, say the police. The victims suffer multiple injuries.
Police attribute rash driving and the spiralling number of vehicles as the cause for accidents. However, motorists see lax enforcement as a contributing factor.
Dented cars are a common sight in Madurai, as in the metros, a retired doctor from the Government Rajaji Hospital noted. Data available with the Transport Department indicates that close to 400 new vehicles visit the three RTOs (Regional Transport Office) daily for registration, which means a minimum of 10,000 new vehicles, is added to the existing number.
Disobedient drivers
Disregard of traffic rules by motorists is the single biggest problem faced by law enforcers. For instance, the City Traffic Police introduced a one-way system along the Alagar Koil Road and Ghokale Road six months back.
However, the stretch functions as a two-way street in the early morning and late night. Haphazard parking compounds the confusion for road users.
On the south side of the city, at Palanganatham intersection where bridge work is under way, motorists travelling from Alagappan Nagar, TVS Nagar and other pockets towards the arterial TPK Road complain that drivers on the TPK Road refuse to slow down for motorists to join the road once the Railway Level Crossing is opened. Accidents occur at this point as a result of the traffic melee.
Pedestrians in particular have a harrowing time while crossing the street at locations such as the Periyar and Maatuthavani bus stands and on the Ghokale Road.
A senior traffic police officer said the police were imposing fines on erring motorists under the Motor Vehicles Act.
A traffic policeman has been posted near the Alagappan Nagar-TPK Road intersection for regulating vehicles, he added.
However, locals maintain that the policeman is seen only at certain times.
