Arterial roads in the northern parts of the city witnessed 244 fatalities last year. The presence of a large number of heavy vehicles, speeding, rash driving and uneven roads are among the reasons for the large number of accidents in these parts.
According to data available with the traffic police (north), of the 244 fatalities, 117 were motorists and 67 pedestrians. Among the stretches that witnessed accidents on almost a daily basis were the Grand Northern Trunk (GNT) Road from Moolakadai to Red Hills, with 50 fatal accidents. This was followed by the 200 Feet Road (Padi-Madhavaram-Manali) that accounted for 22 accidents. A total of 15 accidents were reported on Ponneri High Road, police said.
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Murugan, who travels on GNT Road every day, said a majority of the accidents occurr due to rash driving. “At a U-turn between Moolakadai and Madhavaram roundabout, motorists making the U-turn or crossing do not stop and wait. This haphazard driving has often resulted in accidents. It is also common for motorists to ride on the wrong side of the road,” he said.
A college student pointed out that non-stop movement of lorries made the bypass road leading to Manali extremely dangerous. “We can never judge which side they go,” she said. Muthukumar, an auto driver, said rash driving of container lorries along GNT Road and 200 Feet Road caused accidents. “At junctions, vehicles come from all sides, and lorries speed and try to overtake each other,” he said.
B. Balaji, a resident of Mathur who drives on the Madhavaram-Red Hills stretch every day, said: “Container lorries are parked on either side of the road. As a result, two-wheelers and cars ram into these lorries. This happens particularly on days when there is poor visibility due to fog.”
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‘Steps taken’
Police claimed that most accidents happen at spots in the median where vehicles make U-turns. “Motorcyclists do not bother to look at both sides of the road before making a turn,” said a police officer.
He also pointed out that many motorists ride on the middle of the road due to accumulation of sand on the sides. “They fear that the vehicle will skid and ride amid the speeding lorries,” the officer said. P. Pakalavan, Deputy Commissioner, North Traffic, said that they are taking steps to reduce accidents. “We have placed barricades 100 m before U-turn points. This way the speed of vehicles will reduce and motorists crossing at intersections would not meet with fatal accidents,” he said.