21,000 penalized for flouting traffic rules

Vadodara: Police have once again turned the heat on the traffic offenders by stepping up the drive to penalize those flouting traffic rules during the peak hours. In last one week, cops have penalized 21,027 offenders and collected nearly Rs 37 lakh as penalty.
“We have prepared a plan for the entire month and picked up some of the busy areas that witness lot of traffic during the peak hours. Commuters usually flout the traffic rules in such areas,” the police said. From Kala Ghoda Circle, Fatehgunj, Rhino Circle, Bird Circle, Bhimnath Bridge Road to Dandia Bazaar Crossroads, Mandvi, Lehripura, Manek Park Circle and Sardar Estate, most of the areas have been covered in the drive.
“Under different heads, we are penalizing commuters for not wearing helmets, over-speeding, talking on mobile phones while driving or driving on the wrong side of the road. The focus is also on autos overloaded with passengers and heavy vehicles,” said Amita Vanani, ACP (traffic). Different teams of traffic cops as well as those from police stations have been roped in for the drive.
Between May 5 and May 11, the police penalized 3,345 drivers for driving on the wrong side of the road and collected Rs 3,34,500 penalty. Over 3,000 vehicles were towed away from no-parking zones and penalty worth Rs 6,08,800 was collected from the drivers. The police also issued 14,663 e-challans and penalty worth Rs 27,55,500 has been imposed. “Apart from penalizing offenders, we have been organizing the traffic courtesy campaigns to educate people on driving rules and road safety,” the police said.