Traffic police plans to cut speed limit on 28km stretch of NH-48

The Gurugram traffic police will submit a proposal for reducing the maximum speed limit of vehicles on a 28km stretch on NH-48--spanning from Sirhaul toll to NSG campus in Manesar--to the deputy commissioner in the next district road safety committee meeting, said traffic officials on Tuesday.

The stretch cuts across densely populated areas and hence, needs to be treated as a major city road with lower speed limits, said officials.

Deputy commissioner of police (traffic), Gurugram, Ravinder Singh Tomar said just like how the Delhi traffic police reduced the speed limit on highways across the national capital in June last year, the Gurugram traffic police will recommend reducing the maximum speed limit of cars on the 28km stretch to 70 kmph and of heavy vehicles to 40 kmph. The current speed limit for cars on the highway is 90 kmph and 50 kmph for trucks. Tomar said the speed limit for motorcycles will remain at 50 kmph.

Also read: Road accidents snuff out four lives in Mohali

“Most of NH-48 passes through the middle of the city with densely populated areas on either side of the highway. The issue of reducing the speed limit on highways was discussed with the deputy commissioner in the previous road safety meeting. We will now submit a proposal to him in the next district road safety committee meeting for further implementation,” said Tomar adding that around 20% of the accidents on NH 48 happen due to over speeding.

The district road safety committee meetings are usually held monthly, where officials from government agencies such as the district administration, the Gurugram traffic police, Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA), National Highways Authority of India, Municipal Corporation of Gurugram, public works department as well as road safety experts identify accident-prone stretches and come up with suggestions and recommendations to make stretches within Gurugram safer. The last such meeting was held on May 27.

Deputy commissioner Nishant Yadav, who heads these meetings on road safety, said he would direct NHAI officials to implement the changes in the next meeting.

“The matter of reducing speed limits on highways was discussed with traffic police in the previous DRSC meetings. Once the traffic police submits the proposal, directions will be issued to NHAI for revising the speed limits on highways and updating sign boards bearing speed limits. This will help reduce road fatalities and accidents, and overall make NH-48 a safer stretch,” said Yadav.

Also read: 3 of Jalandhar family killed in car accident near Tanda

The 28km of NH 48 is one of the most unsafe stretches in Gurugram. As per data gathered by Gurugram Vision Zero--a road safety programme of the district administration, there are 10 blackspots falling on this stretch--- Shankar Chowk, IFFCO Chowk, Signature Chowk, Rajiv Chowk, Hero Honda Chowk, Narsinghpur, Khandsa, Kherki Daula toll plaza, IMT Manesar Chowk and Jharsa Chowk

Any 500-metre stretch, which records more than five road fatalities in a three-year period, is classified as a black spot.

“Speeding, especially on NH-48, is the primary cause of accidents and road fatalities. Reducing speed limit, along with regular enforcement, can bring down accidents by 30-40% if executed properly, and most importantly save lives,” said Sarika Panda Bhatt, programme lead of GVZ.

“We will wait for the proposal or official directions from the Gurugram district administration and accordingly take action,” said Nirman Jambulkar, project director of NHAI.

Also read: Kullu: 12 killed as bus plunges into gorge, CM orders magisterial probe

Officials from the district administration said the date for the next meeting has not been finalised as of now.

Sewa Ram, an urban transport systems design expert and a faculty member at the School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi, said, “The highway is not divided by any state border. Recommending speed limits for the part of the highway falling in Gurugram as the same as Delhi is the most logical step. It will ensure there is continuity in speed limits both in Delhi and Gurugram.”