Prosecution of motorists on New Year’s Eve rises

Prosecution of motorists on New Year’s Eve more than doubled in 2016 compared to last year.

As many as 13,260 motorists were prosecuted on December 31, 2016, compared to 6,486 motorists prosecuted on the same date in 2015.

In order to ensure a hassle-free experience on roads, the traffic police made elaborate arrangements on various routes across the city, with special focus on areas in the vicinity of Connaught Place and other busy areas including Hauz Khas, Khan Market and Saket.

Drunken driving the same

As many as 2,423 traffic officials were present till the early hours to check violation of rules during the year-end revelries. Of the violators, 889 motorists were prosecuted for drunken driving, almost the same as last year’s figure of 887. Incidents of over-speeding witnessed a sharp decline on Saturday, as only 78 motorists were prosecuted as opposed to 335 in 2015. There were 4,022 instances of motorists riding without a helmet, nearly six times last year’s figure of 730.

As many as 789 motorists were prosecuted for driving on the wrong carriageway, as opposed to 148 motorists in 2015. As many as 414 two-wheeler riders were prosecuted for triple riding.

New heads

Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Garima Bhatnagar attributed the rise in numbers to inclusion of new heads. “We realised that drunken driving was not the only reason why accidents happened. All kinds of violations needed to be checked,” she said.

Among several restrictions imposed in the heart of Delhi, no vehicle was allowed to proceed towards Connaught Place beyond certain points.