Photo: 206729748 / 49 / 50 – M.Moorthy – Caption: A traffic police officer regulating traffic flow at the Head Post Office traffic junction. Violations such as over speeding and jumping traffic signal are frequent in the city.

TIRUCHI: The recent announcement by the district administration notifying speed limits for vehicles in the city limits may have evoked mixed reactions among motorists. But civic activists have largely welcomed the move and called for its effective enforcement to check accidents.

Collector K.Rajamani in a recent notification announced that a speed limit off 30 km for all vehicles between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. within the city limits. Motorists can drive at a speed of 40 km after 10 in the night until 7 in the morning. The notification was apparently based on discussions at the District Road Safety Council.

Mr.Rajamani said the stipulation has been fixed in an attempt to check accidents and urged motorists to strictly conform to the speed limits while driving within the city.

But in a city where traffic rules are violated with impunity, the announcement has been met with scepticism in certain sections. While civic activists come up with a host of complaints against law enforcers for accidents, police and transport authorities often blame drivers. Poor enforcement of traffic rules tops the grievances of civic activists. The police on the other hand say that drunken driving and over-speeding were the major reasons for most of the accidents. But this again only points to lack of enforcement, say civic activists.

“We have long been demanding that fixing of speed limits for vehicles within the city. Recently, the district rural police did so and put up sign boards indicating the speed limit. Studies indicate that over speeding is an important reason for accidents. We hope that the Collector’s announcement fixing the speed limit will help bring down accidents caused by over speeding,” said M.Sekaran, member of District Road Safety Council and president, Federation of Consumer and Service Organisations.

“For a very long time, there has not been a single sign board indicating the speed limit for vehicles in the city. So the move is welcome and sign boards indicating the limits should be put up. Speed limit should be reasonable and can vary from road to road, depending on the traffic density and peak hours. The speed limit can be 40 km on some of the wide roads with lesser traffic. Besides, the timings can be slightly relaxed – the 30 km limit can be enforced between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.,” observed S.Pushpavanam, Secretary, Consumer Protection Council. Roads are meant for vehicles but there were few roads in the city where motorists can drive at reasonable speed, he added.

Welcoming the move, N.Ramakrishnan, a civic activist, described it as a timely and bold decision by the Collector. “It meets an urgent need. We cannot be oblivious to the loss of lives in road accidents. However, enforcement will be the key. The authorities should ensure that speed governors are fixed on city buses,” he said.

However, given the widespread scepticism among road users on the enforcement of traffic rules in the city, Mr.Sekaran concedes that the police and media have to make concerted attempts to publicise and enforce the speed limit. Strict enforcement, if highlighted well by media, can help check over speeding, he says.

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