The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Highways Department takes up traffic, accidents census

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, May 31, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Highways Department takes up traffic, accidents census

K. Manikandan and Kannal Achuthan

Move aims to ascertain causes of accidents, find out ways to prevent them

SURVEY: A test using a speed gun in progress on the NH-45 on Wednesday as part of a survey launched by the Highways Research Station on road accidents. — Photo A. Muralitharan

CHENNAI : Road accidents on the Chennai-Tambaram stretch of National Highway-45 (beginning from near the Island Grounds) killed 126 people last year.

In the same year, 51 people were killed between Tiruvanmiyur and Muthukadu on the East Coast Road (ECR). Scores were also injured in the accidents.

There is little indication of the fatalities coming down this year: till March, 51 people were killed in accidents on the NH-45 stretch and nine on the ECR.

Preventive means

In a bid to ascertain the causes and devise preventive means, the Highways Research Station (HRS) of the State Highways Department has been conducting a study of the accidents on these roads.

The study commenced in 2006. The field work in the form of traffic census and survey started recently. The final report will be submitted to the State Government next year.

More than 150 enumerators — volunteers from the Home Guards — are involved in the survey, monitoring the movement of vehicles in 15-minute segments.

The survey is being conducted round-the-clock in three locations — Sanatorium, Kathipara junction and Simpson bus stop on Anna Salai. It will soon move to three locations between Irumbuliyur and Chengalpattu, before moving to ECR, according to A. Samuel Ebenezer of the Traffic Engineering Division, HRS.

The Department has also adopted Geographic Information Systems to supplement the research and findings. With support from the Home Department, HRS has statistics pertaining to the scene, time and cause of accidents, number of casualties and the vehicles involved.

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