The number of accidents on the Kozhikode-Kannur stretch of the National Highway 17, especially the 44-kilometre stretch between Vadakara and Kannur, is yet to come down despite efforts by the Motor Vehicle Department and the police to strictly implement traffic rules.
Since the beginning of the monsoon season, no fewer than 15 accidents were reported on the route, including those involving school buses, motorbikes, goods-carriers, and buses. “The vehicles, especially contract carriages, seem to be exploiting to the hilt the recent modification of speed limit to 80 km per hour,” Radhakrishnan, a native of Vadakara, says.
Even during rainy days, vehicles are found crossing this speed limit unmindful of the slippery road and blurred vision.
Senior officials of the Motor Vehicles Department say they have identified 18 “black spots” on the Kozhikode-Kannur national highway to take up surveillance measures. “We identified these spots taking into account the frequency of accidents there,” they say.
MVD sources say an earlier suggestion to install radar cameras on all identified “black spots” is still pending. Same is the case with the proposal to set up special control rooms to receive live feeds from radar cameras.
Along with surveillance, rescue operations too are facing setback. In a recent accident, three injured travellers in an overturned car had to remain inside the vehicle for over two hours as local people had no mechanism to pull them out. In another incident, it took hours to remove a car that was gutted near a busy traffic junction in Vadakara.
