manoj

There may be less traffic on Pune’s roads after 9 pm but traffic accidents rise sharply as the driving gets more dangerous and vehicles take empty roads as an invitation to speed up.

Reckless and drunken driving are the main reasons for the accidents.

With the traffic police switching off signals after 9.30 pm (only the ones at Jedhe chowk and Alka chowk are kept on till midnight), the temptation to race has only increased.

When asked why the signals are switched off, assistant commissioner of police (traffic), S.M. Bhoomkar, said, “Since there is less traffic during night hours and only a few men to regulate traffic, the lights are switched off, most of them automatically. “Keeping traffic signals on in the night in the absence of traffic police, would only lead to confusion,” he said, adding that the red and amber lights are put on blinkers.

“This is an international norm,” Bhoomkar said, explaining that a red blinker is an indicator that the driver is approaching a major traffic junction where he has to stop and proceed, while the amber light indicates that the driver has to slow down before proceeding.

What’s more, with only 40 policemen of the 450-strong traffic police force during night hours to man the entire city, including Pimpri-Chinchwad, the urge to break the rule has only grown stronger.

Moreover, the ‘pub culture’ has resulted in increased late night activities throughout the week, more so, during the weekends.

Although the city traffic police have not undertaken any study on clock-wise road accidents, an official said more than 35% of all accidents take place during the night hours. “And over 90% of the accidents reported during night-time are fatal,” said a police official.


NIGHT NUMBERS

• Traffic signals kept on at night: Nil
• Police say 35% of all accidents occur in night hours. 90% fatal
• Night-time traffic: 80% less than daytime
• Traffic cops on duty at night: 40
• Total length of roads in city: 1,252 km
• Ratio of cops to km during night: 1 cop for a little over 31 km
• Pune city has 152 traffic junctions, besides 1,477 chowks

CRASH FACTORS

• Drunken driving
• Over speeding, tendency to race (in 2006, 287 cases registered; in 2007 till March, 114 cases registered)
• Scant respect for other motorists and traffic rules
• Use of high beam
• Not wearing helmet, seat-belt
• Listening to music at full blast
• Talking on cell

Source: http://epaper.timesofindia.com (Pune Edition)
Date Of Publish: 02-May-07

__________________
Nothing is fool-proof to a talented fool.

junaid

yes culture of drunken driving is increasing rapidly in cities having number of MNCs and BPOs.

manoj

Accidents occurring at night are taking their toll on the city.

Be it the invitation to speed that open roads offer at night or the impaired mind-body co-ordination caused by factors like sleep deprivation and inebriation... the sight of mangled metal and broken limbs has become all too common in Pune these days. Yes, the city has a new scourge on its hands — that of rising road accidents at night!

Neurosurgeon Ashok Bhanage says the multi-speciality hospital he is attached to has taken in as many as 32 night-time accidents cases in the last 60 days alone.

“Ours being tertiary centre, only the serious cases are admitted,” he says. And, according to him, it’s not just the number of accidents that has witnessed a gradual rise, the severity of injuries has also multiplied.

The Centre for Youth and Development Activities (CYDA), an NGO that recently carried out a survey on traffic violation in the city, said that although the traffic burden between 9 pm and 6 am is only 15% of that during the day hours, the number of accidents are eight times more than those between 6 am and 9 pm.

“Today’s youngsters are at a particular risk as they indulge in a fast-track life,” Bhanage says, adding that the resistance to wearing either a helmet or a seat belt and the bad condition of the roads only make them more vulnerable.

Vijay Kaul, whose son Siddharth met with an accident at 11.30 pm at Kondhwa a month ago, lays the blame squarely on his son. Kaul says he had warned him several times about wearing a helmet. “He just didn’t bother,” he says, adding that they had an argument on this issue just 10 days before the accident.

According to police commissioner Jayant Umranikar, drunken driving is another major factor for most of the accidents during the night. “Hit-and run cases are also on the rise during the night hours,” he said.

Harish Rathe, a 25-year-old media professional, recently lost his friend in a night accident and said it was a case of drunken driving. “Most motorists tend to get a little careless about traffic rules at night. Even the cops are not around to regulate the traffic,” he added.

However, even the police claim to be overburdened. The city has 152 traffic junctions besides over 1,477 chowks. Each traffic policeman in the city is supposed to keep a watch on 3,983 vehicles and the load is increasing every month with more than 12,000 vehicles being registered in the city, the police say.

Road safety crusader Chandmal Parmar of the Rajashree Parmar Memorial Foundation corroborated the increase in accidents after dark, saying that 60-80% of the mishaps occur during that period. “Rash driving, no brake lights etc. are to blame, but sleep-deprivation is a primary factor for such accidents,” he said.

His words of advice, “Avoid travelling at night.”

OTHER FACTS

• Each traffic police personnel in the city is supposed to keep a watch on 3,983 vehicles, compare this with the Mumbai traffic police with a strength of 2,000 personnel and each constable has a burden of only 750 vehicles
• There are 24 lakh vehicles (including two-wheelers) in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad
• The police register at least one fatal road accident and 3-4 four serious mishaps daily

Traffic junctions where one needs to be careful at night:

• Jedhe Chowk (Swargate)
• Sancheti Hospital Chowk
• College of Engineering Chowk
• Alka Chowk
• Good Luck Chowk
• Balgandharva Chowk
• Shimla office Chowk
• Belbaug Chowk
• Pune Station Chowk
• Bund Garden Chowk
• Jehangir Hospital Chowk
• Lullanagar Chowk

Source: http://epaper.timesofindia.com (Pune Edition)
Date Of Publish: 03-May-07

__________________
Nothing is fool-proof to a talented fool.

road runner

we are advancing fast into the hi lanes where education and technology are concerned, but civic assessments seem far behind and we end up with poor road manners and bad drivers.

motorbike

The roads are vacant and wide open , all traffic signals are switched off, there are no cops around and the motorists are high on acceleration...Driver does not know the proper use of high beam (the beam of a car's headlights that provides distant illumination ) as well as low beam (the beam of a car's headlights that provides illumination for a short distance ). I really feel scared to drive after 10 pm.

babu

If you are out on the road at night or when it is dark, wear light but bright colored clothes so that you are easily visible from a distance. White and Yellow would be the best options. Wearing reflectors would be excellent.