KOLKATA: Nearly 70% of bus accidents in the city this year did not involve racing buses, contrary to the common belief. Close to 19 accidents — several of them fatal— took place when the victim was either boarding, alighting the bus or hanging by the door.
Most sergeants have now agreed to what the bus owners have been observing for long — loss of the quintessential helper, who acted as the eye of the driver as far as the left lane was concerned.
“The driver sitting on the right side often fails to see what is happening on the front left side of the vehicle, which includes seeing whether a passenger has got up or alighted safely. Low-floor buses and government buses are the only ones that have been properly equipped with looking glasses in front of the windscreen. Most private buses and old government buses have small looking glasses that do not cover the entire view.” said a cop from the fatal squad.
The helper had always assisted a driver to spot people and vehicles on the left, which helped him take an informed decision while driving.
Now, with most buses having a single conductor, he gets busy issuing tickets and it is not always possible for him to watch the passengers getting on and off the bus,” explained an officer at Lalbazar.
Two recent accidents, one in which a 70-year-old tutor lost her life at Triangular Park and another where a 23-year-old fell off the bus on Outram Road while getting off, are two best examples of this problem.
DC (Traffic) Santosh Pandey said they will also ask the bus owners to attend a meeting soon to drive home this point. “All possible engineering changes — and those that are possible within even a tight budget — will be proposed,” said Pandey. The drivers, too, will be asked to undergo an orientation course to use the looking glass at all times.
Tapan Banerjee of the Joint Council of Bus Syndicate said: “Driving with a closed door policy is not feasible for us but we can certainly install larger looking glasses. The helpers used to be our backbone at the gates but rising costs and government apathy have forced us to abandon that system,” said Banerjee.
Most sergeants have now agreed to what the bus owners have been observing for long — loss of the quintessential helper, who acted as the eye of the driver as far as the left lane was concerned.
Times View
What makes these accidents even more tragic is the fact that many of them have been avoidable. Drivers need to be sensitised about some of the main reasons for accidents; so the renewed police focus makes a lot of sense.
“The driver sitting on the right side often fails to see what is happening on the front left side of the vehicle, which includes seeing whether a passenger has got up or alighted safely. Low-floor buses and government buses are the only ones that have been properly equipped with looking glasses in front of the windscreen. Most private buses and old government buses have small looking glasses that do not cover the entire view.” said a cop from the fatal squad.
The helper had always assisted a driver to spot people and vehicles on the left, which helped him take an informed decision while driving.
Now, with most buses having a single conductor, he gets busy issuing tickets and it is not always possible for him to watch the passengers getting on and off the bus,” explained an officer at Lalbazar.
Two recent accidents, one in which a 70-year-old tutor lost her life at Triangular Park and another where a 23-year-old fell off the bus on Outram Road while getting off, are two best examples of this problem.
DC (Traffic) Santosh Pandey said they will also ask the bus owners to attend a meeting soon to drive home this point. “All possible engineering changes — and those that are possible within even a tight budget — will be proposed,” said Pandey. The drivers, too, will be asked to undergo an orientation course to use the looking glass at all times.
Tapan Banerjee of the Joint Council of Bus Syndicate said: “Driving with a closed door policy is not feasible for us but we can certainly install larger looking glasses. The helpers used to be our backbone at the gates but rising costs and government apathy have forced us to abandon that system,” said Banerjee.
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