PIL in HC wants separate road lane for 2-wheelers; notice issued to TN

CHENNAI: Flagging absence of an exclusive city road traffic policy to carve a space for two-wheelers in Chennai city, a public interest writ petition in Madras high court sought restoration of an exclusive lane for two-wheelers.
Chennai has maximum number of two-wheelers in the country, and it also suffered maximum road accidents involving two-wheelers in the country, the PIL pointed out.
Admitting the PIL filed by S Kumara Doss of Chromepet, who said he was personally affected because he was a two-wheeler rider, the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjay Vijaykumar Gangapurwala and Justice P D Audikesavalu issued notices to the state government asking it to respond to the plea by June 22.
In this regard, Kumara Doss referred to a media interview given by additional commissioner of police (traffic) in Chennai on March 30, 2022, and said the officer had admitted that the dedicated lanes for two-wheelers and other vehicles were in practice in Anna Salai and that the same was discontinued for CMRL work. So far, it has not been resumed, he added.
Stressing on the importance of lane discipline, the PIL said though it was an important and integral part of traffic management to ensure optimal use of road infrastructure, there are enforcement of this rule. He said lane regulation is not being implemented on city roads, where wrong side driving alone is seen as road rule violation.
"The rampant negligence of the vehicle plying without any road or lane discipline in the roads are of cause of concern, and the worrisome part is that people are squatting the road safety rules and the authorities are not bothered to regulate the same," he said.
According to Kumara Doss, the challenges a commuter faces in the roads of Chennai city are deteriorating day by day, it has become so hectic and dangerous to travel in the city roads.
He also complained that bigger and slower moving vehicles have been dominating the road space, at the cost of smaller and faster moving vehicles like the two-wheelers.