Pune truck accident: Authorities propose phased reduction of heavy vehicles’ speed limits, dismantling of ‘selfie point’
The authorities proposed a reduction in the gradient of the slope on the Navale bridge as well as the curvature of the highway bypass connecting the viaduct and Swami Narayan Temple.
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The accident took place around 8.30 pm on the Katraj-Dehu road bypass of the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway. (Express Photo by Pavan Khengre)Phased reduction of heavy vehicles’ speed limit and dismantling of ‘selfie point’ are some of the key measures announced jointly by stakeholder agencies to improve road safety after the truck accident on the Navale bridge in Pune Sunday night.
On Monday afternoon, several senior officers of the Pune city police, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) visited the accident spot and examined various aspects. Later in the evening, a meeting of top officials from these agencies held deliberation and came out with a number of corrective measures to improve safety on the highly accident-prone patches on the Katraj-Dehu road bypass in Katraj and Narhe.
Data shared by the Pune police suggests that the two neighbouring accident-prone ‘black spots’ in the area — Navale bridge and the ‘selfie point’ next to it– have reported 31 deaths in 108 accidents over the last five years.
The authorities proposed a reduction in the gradient of the slope on the Navale bridge as well as the curvature of the highway bypass connecting the viaduct and Swami Narayan Temple. Pune police commissioner Amitabh Gupta said the reduction of the slope gradient would remain a key priority for the safety of the passengers.
A phased reduction in the speed limit of heavy vehicles and taking it down to 40 kilometres per hour is also one of the priority items on the list. The authorities proposed the deployment of more speed guns for the enforcement of speed limits in different areas.
Authorities said that painting additional rumble strips and installing more reflectors are on the cards. In some areas, painting rumble strips every 400 metres has been proposed, along with their regular maintenance.
Rumble strips will be painted on service roads as well as roads connecting to the highway and the number of street lights will be increased.
Dismantling the ‘selfie point’ adjacent to the bridge has been proposed to ensure citizens do not come on the highway along the staircase from the service road to the selfie point.
The Navale bridge in the Narhe area of Pune and its adjacent point known as ‘selfie point’ — because of a board put by local representatives where people take selfies — are both black spots on the list of the Integrated Road Accident Database (iRAD) launched by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways of India.
According to norms set up by the ministry and the Indian Road Congress, a patch of 500 metres of the road on which five or more accidents with fatalities or grievous injuries have taken place in three years, is referred to as a ‘black spot’.
The authorities also proposed installing blinkers on the Navale bridge and nearby stretches and repositioning the signage board to ensure they are visible in a better manner to drivers.
The accident took place around 8.30 pm Sunday on the Katraj-Dehu road bypass of the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway when a truck went out of the driver’s control and hit at least 48 vehicles, 24 of which were badly damaged. Around 20 persons were injured and six of them were hospitalised while others required administration of first aid.
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