Two persons sustained injuries when a mini cargo van laden with Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) systems and batteries, on its way to R.S. Puram on Thursday hit the parapet wall and fell off Avanashi Road flyover.The van, coming from Chennai, was negotiating a curve on the Avanashi Road flyover when it was said to have hit a two-wheeler injuring its driver Boopathy (49). The jeep driver Gunasekaran also sustained injuries. Traffic Investigation Wing police are investigating.
This particular accident has once again raised the question on the safety of motorists using the flyover, especially because of the narrow stretch as well as the weak parapet wall. The flyover built in 1972 in the last three decades had witnessed only very little maintenance works, says K. Kathirmathiyon, secretary, Coimbatore Consumer Cause.
Police officials pointed out that Avinashi Road flyover as well as the North Coimbatore flyover were too narrow and more than two-lanes of traffic negotiating on the flyover would be difficult.
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The parapet wall at the Avinashi Road flyover was too weak and all the maintenance work done so far was only in the form of patch work.
The parapet wall was not strong enough to withstand when a vehicle hits, police said.
However, official sources said that efforts were on to widen the flyover. Proposals would be submitted for getting the required administrative and financial sanction for improving the condition of the flyover.
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Mr. Kathirmathiyon said that the lack of safety measures on the flyover was discussed many times at the Road Safety-cum-Traffic Advisory Committee meetings but nothing has translated into action so far. Instead of waiting for the proposal to materialise, he sought an ad-hoc measure of putting up caution sign boards at the approach of the flyover itself.