98 lives lost between January and April
The number of people killed in road accidents in the city's southern suburbs has come down in the first four months this year, compared to the same period in 2011.
Ninety-eight people lost their lives in 507 accidents under the St. Thomas Mount Traffic (Investigation) Police's jurisdiction, between January and April this year.
In the same period last year, 129 people were killed in 800 accidents. This jurisdiction includes areas that come under the limits of 15 police stations of the St. Thomas Mount Police District that was merged with Chennai City Police last year, after being a part of Chennai Suburban Police for more than three years.
S. Dinakaran, Inspector of Police, attributes the reduction in the number of accidents to regular interaction with the crew of heavy vehicles, including Metropolitan Transport Corporation buses and buses belonging to private operators hired by colleges and private companies, as well as lorries. Also, continuous action taken against violators of road rules, and education and awareness on safe driving practices among motorists has helped, he said.
The widening of arterial roads and the provision of medians and the completion of bridges and subways are also some of the reasons the accident rate has taken a dip, Mr. Dinakaran says. However, even after such improvement work, pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists continue to top the list of victims in road accidents.
Statistics reveal that one-third of the total number of victims were involved in accidents on Grand Southern Trunk Road between Kathipara and Perungalathur. On this stretch, 32 people have been killed in accidents so far, and for the same period in 2011, the number stood at 46. Other dangerous stretches are Velachery Main Road – State Highway No. 48 (also known as Marmalong Bridge Irumbuliyur Road) that links East Tambaram with Saidapet via Velachery.
In the stretch that comes under the St. Thomas Mount Police District between East Tambaram and Pallikaranai, 18 people have lost their lives in accidents on Velachery Main Road so far this year, while the figure was 23 for the corresponding period in 2011.
Even on Pallavaram – Thoraipakkam Radial Road, the number of people killed in road accidents has come down from six in 2011 to just three this year. However, on the Chennai Bypass, that links GST Road with NH 4 (Bengaluru Highway) and Kolkatta Highway (NH 5), the number of people killed in accidents so far this year is 10, an increase from six in 2011.
Keywords: Chennai road accidents
