The spree of fatal accidents, involving heavy vehicles, in the last 10 days on the stretch from Reddiyarpalayam to Moolakulam, which has emerged as a major accident-prone zone, has wrong-footed the traffic police and the authorities.
The traffic police said the first accident was reported on June 1, when the driver of a Villianur-bound container lorry jumped the divider while trying to avoid hitting a motorist and rammed into a car coming in the opposite direction. Two occupants of the car were crushed to death.
Two days later, a 43-year-old anganwadi worker was run over by a private bus after she was knocked down from her scooter while going to office. The bus hit the two-wheeler from behind. According to an official, “The bus was speeding at the time of the accident. The stretch is a bottleneck as encroachments on the sides have made it difficult for vehicles to move freely.”
According to an urban planner, “Inadequacies in traffic rule enforcement, coupled with the delay in widening the stretch, are the main reason for accidents to increase. Private buses race with one another to enter the city, causing accidents on the stretch. The city’s roads are also inadequate for the growing population and the increasing number of vehicles. The traffic police should deploy more men at busy junctions.”
“It is not just private buses that break rules. Buses operated by private companies as well as tipper trucks are guilty. Heavy vehicles regularly jump the signal, putting other vehicles, especially motorists, at risk. The issue needs to be addressed on a larger scale. The police should install surveillance cameras on the stretch to monitor traffic violations,” said Sekar, a resident of Jaya Nagar.
A Transport Department official underscored the need for inculcating road safety rules in drivers as well as members of the public. The Department, he said, would soon hold a meeting of stakeholders, including bus operators, to conduct training and awareness courses for drivers.
The government had notified speed limits in the city in 2019, and the traffic police should enforce them to prevent accidents, say residents.
When contacted, a traffic police officer said the department ran short of manpower and infrastructure. The sanctioned strength had not been revised, though the number of cases had gone up, he said. The vehicle population in the city is over 7 lakh and the police have the onerous task of regulating the huge traffic, he said.
