Panaji: The high court of Bombay at Goa has asked govt to look into a public interest petition on the growing number of road fatalities, inadequate road infrastructure, inconsistent traffic law enforcement and lack of adoption of modern traffic management technologies.
The court’s division bench has asked govt agencies to address the grievances raised in advocate Moses Pinto’s petition and take appropriate action in accordance with the law.
The PIL seeks the high court’s intervention to direct the govt to adopt effective road safety measures and policies.
The fatality rate on Goa’s roads, including national highways, is increasing due to inadequate road safety infrastructure and lapses in oversight during the execution of new road infrastructure projects, he told the court.
The PIL also states that the construction of the elevated corridor at Porvorim on NH66 has resulted in severe congestion, particularly affecting the stretch between Guirim junction and Mall de Goa. It also said that diversions due to the work at Porvorim have caused further disruption.
The PIL seeks directions to Goa govt to establish trauma care centres along major highways and accident-prone areas to ensure the availability of timely response.
In order to address the high incidence of drunk driving, he sought implementation of systematic breathalyser testing, especially in tourist-heavy areas like Porvorim and Anjuna.
As immediate relief, Pinto sought emergency repairs on critical road sections identified as high-risk or accident-prone, deployment of speed cameras, automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) systems, and temporary traffic signals at high-risk intersections and construction zones to manage traffic flow and enforce safety regulations.