In a bid to reduce pedestrian accidents on its roads, the Highways Department is filling up small gaps on medians -- points where pedestrians squeeze through to cross roads.
Official sources in the department said that these are usually spots where street lamp posts are located. “We had let the gaps remain so that repairs could be carried out to the electric cables when needed. But that seemed detrimental to both pedestrians and motorists, causing accidents,” the official explained.
The openings are being shuttered and cement concrete is being poured inside to seal the openings that are just about 2 feet wide. Depending on the light requirement, the lamp posts are placed at intervals of 30 metres in some places and 50 metres in others.
Pedestrians are the most affected when it comes to road accidents -- nearly 80% involve pedestrians. Jay-walking cannot be allowed since many times youngsters just jump over medians, officials say.
Median openings on many roads including on East Coast Road will soon be closed to prevent people running across. The present openings have been provided on the basis of advice from traffic police. The height of medians on highway roads is being maintained at 1.2 metres to ensure people don’t jump over, the official added.
Motorists, who welcomed the closing of small gaps, said that however many times youngsters just jumped over the medians. “At night, when vision is low or during rains, if this happens it adds to our stress. If there is a curve ahead you can actually see them jump over like gymnasts. If someone suddenly jumps just a few feet ahead of us, we cannot brake as it could cause multiple collisions. Police must take steps to prevent jaywalking,” said G. Ramakrishnan, a resident of Besant Nagar.
Raju Nagar resident K. Sriram said that Rajiv Gandhi Salai was notorious for jaywalking. “There are not many foot over bridges for pedestrians on this road and people just choose to cross wherever they please. At nights, when people jump from behind the plants on the median, it is even more dangerous. If something is done for OMR’s medians it would help motorists,” he said.
