A gazette notification issued by the Union government earlier this month allowing a maximum speed limit of 120 km per hour on the Outer Ring Road and the 11-km PVNR Expressway is unlikely to be implemented by the State government, which intends to continue with the maximum speed limit at 100 kmph.
The notification issued on April 6 stated that the maximum speed limit on ORR, which falls in the Expressway with Access Control category, can be 120 kmph and vehicles on four-lane and above divided carriageway can be driven at 100 kmph, while maximum speed for vehicles on road in municipal limits and other has to be 70 kmph.
Officials meet
Following the notification, the Traffic wings of Cyberabad and Rachakonda Commissionerates held meetings with officials of both Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority and Transport department and decided not to step-up the speed limit on both ORR and PVNR Expressway.
The decision was taken in view of increasing fatal accidents on ORR and considering the road condition, said a senior police officer.
“Raising or slashing the speed limit depends on the State government’s Motor Vehicle Act. The issued notification clearly says that maximum speed limit should not exceed 120 kmph on Expressway in the country,” said K. Ramesh Naidu, Rachakonda Traffic DCP.
Earlier, the maximum speed limit on ORR was 120 kmph, which has resulted in spurt of fatal accidents and to curb the spate, the Cyberabad police had revised speed limit from 120 kmph to 100 kmph in May last year.
“Overspeeding is the prime reason for accidents on ORR. Till March 31 this year, 28 accidents took place on ORR, of which 13 were fatal,” said a senior police official, adding that 15 persons died in these road accidents.
Around 97 km stretch of ORR passes through Cyberabad and 61 km in Rachakonda Commissionerates.
Meanwhile, in a span of 4 months, Traffic police of Cyberabad and Rachakonda issued 1,35,584 challans of over speeding on ORR alone.
