Tamil Nadu   

NH 67, a nightmare for drivers, public

KARUR: The Tiruchi-Karur stretch of the National Highway 67, with its sharp curves, uneven surfaces, narrow stretches, thickly populated localities, speeding buses and numerous sand-laden lorries, is fast turning into a killer highway if the number of road accidents that have come to mark each passing day are any indication. Life is slowly turning into a nightmare both for the drivers plying their vehicles through the stretch and for the public who traverse the road.

Practically not a day passes without an accident or two involving loss of life or persons sustaining injuries or at the least some vehicle getting involved in a collision gets mentioned in the police records.

For most part, the Tiruchi-Lalapet stretch is bounded on the northern side by Cauvery and on the south by the railway track and South Bank Canal. Between Lalapet and Karur the road is a bit wide, but thickly populated road margins again prove to be dangerous.

Narrow road stretches with numerous kinks, surface withered by the ceaseless traffic of numerous sand-laden lorries, private and State Transport Corporation buses plying at breakneck speed with utter contempt for passenger and public safety, people residing in the very many villages dotting the stretch.

After every accident, public in the particular area raise concerns of safety but on the whole hardly any wholesome effort has been made to address the situation.

The new project to expand the section of NH 67 into an expanded two-lane and four lane stretches could be a remedy to some extent. While the four lane stretches between Panjappur and Jeeyapuram as also Veerarakkiam and Karur could be less dangerous, the remaining stretches would continue to be dangerous and in fact the risk level might go up if the road surface were to be improved and maintained properly, facilitating speedier travel.

The need of the hour is effective traffic administration and enforcement of road rules in the NH 67 stretch to bring down the climbing accident rate. Infrastructure-wise developments could wait a little more but administrative actions could be contemplated and initiated immediately.

Primarily private and state-operated bus crew have to be directed to strictly adhere to prescribed speed limits and restrictions should be clamped on movement of sand lorries especially during the peak hours. Most of the accidents involve the sand lorries and reining them in is of utmost importance.

Proper road signs should be installed, even if the NH 67 stretch is to be transferred to private road development firms and caution placards and illuminated signals should be put up at vulnerable or danger spots en route. It would do a world of good if zebra crossings are marked and speed reducing mechanisms put in place in the thickly populate areas. People want officials and administers not to give in to bus and sand lorry operators in case a genuine attempt is made to save the other hapless road users from getting crushed under the wheels.

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