Differing NH speed limits baffle riders in Bhubaneswar

BHUBANESWAR: If you are driving on National Highway 16 in the city, be prepared for some extra legwork on your brakes and accelerator as the speed limit signage may baffle you. Sample this.
At Baramunda on NH-16, a signage by the state transport authority (STA) shows the speed limit for heavy motor vehicle (HMV) at 60 kmph and light motor vehicle (LMV) at 80 kmph. Barely 50 metres away, another signage put up by Khurda district administration reads the HMV speed limit at 65 kmph and LMV 75 kmph.

Recently, the commissionerate police set a 50 kmph speed limit for all types of vehicles across the city, including NH -6. The three separate speed limits set up by different government agencies on a particular stretch sums up the chaotic coordination between authorities concerned towards road safety.
“We will take necessary steps to ensure that the speed limit signages do not create confusion in the minds of motorists,” deputy commissioner of police Prateek Singh said. Sources said the traffic police has been receiving complaints from people regarding the confusing speed limits in the city.
Besides, police commissioner Saumendra Priyadarshi recently urged the transport department to put up signages at different places to make motorists aware of the maximum speed limit. NH-16 passes through Bhubaneswar from Pitapalli to Palasuni Going by the existing system, a district collector is authorized to set the speed limit on roads in his or her jurisdiction.
Exercising powers under Motor Vehicles Act 1988, the STA on November 20, 2021 issued a notification, highlighting the maximum speed of different categories of vehicles. Under Odisha urban police (OUP) Act, a police commissioner is authorised to fix speed limit of vehicles in the police commissionerate area.
Experts said only one government agency should be authorized to fix the speed limits on state and national highways to avoid the confusion. It is ridiculous to see three separate speed limits issued for a particular stretch by different agencies. The government should take a serious note of the chaos created by the different orders, said Sashank Swain, a road safety expert.
Violation of speed limit law has been leading to several road accidents in the state. Statistics of the state transport department said of the 5,081 accident deaths in the state in 2021, nearly 70% of them died due to overspeeding of vehicles. Under section 183 of the amended Motor Vehicles Act, light and heavy vehicles will be fined Rs 2,000 and Rs 4,000, respectively for driving at high speed