The safety of school children has been put to risk as overloaded autorickshaws refuse to disappear from city roads.
The rules allow a maximum of five children up to the age of 14 years while in case of adults, it is three passengers, who could be transported in an autorickshaw. However, a vehicle transporting six to 12 children are a common sight in the city. A boy sitting near the driver’s seat, school and lunch bags hanging outside the vehicle and bags placed on the top of the vehicles question the enforcement of law. “Their bags are hung to the hooks at the sides that pose threat to other road users during the busy hours”, said V. Sumathi of Poondurai Road. She said that the drivers by overloading children not only endanger the lives of the children, but also other road users.
Though parents say that cost-sharing basis reduces their monthly auto fee, they are also aware of the risk involved in transporting more than five children in an auto. “Autos are the only affordable mode of transporting children to school”, said N. Kishore, who works at a private company. He also added that vans or buses cannot enter narrow streets or residential areas and hence parents have to depend only on autos. A traffic policeman on Karur Bypass Road said that despite warnings and registering of cases against the auto drivers, violations continue. “Law alone cannot stop it as parents need to think of the safety of their children”, he added, speaking on anonymity.
Officials of the Regional Transport Department also said that regular checks were conducted and erring drivers were fined. They added that awareness programmes were also conducted in schools on road safety and safe transportation.
