Unwanted speed breakers are on way out from busy thoroughfares bringing relief to drivers facing sudden slowdown in a city plagued with unruly pedestrians, hawkers and squatters.

The road construction department has started removing illegal speed breakers, including rumble strips, from the streets following a Patna High Court order last month.

In fact, there would not be any rumble strip - a set of three to four small concrete humps acting as speed breakers - on the streets any more, as the department had already decided to remove these permanently.

Sources said as per the road construction specifications, rumble strips should have a crest height of 1-3 inches and the distance between two humps should be double the height of one to give a wavy effect. However, most existing rumble strips in the city do not conform to such specifications.

As most of these new-age speed breakers in the city do not conform to specifications, they do more than curb speed. They get the car wheels stuck or throw two-wheelers off balance. Following such minor accidents, the officials have decided to get rid of these.

Speed breakers have already been removed at a number of places in the city. Most speed breakers and rumble strips on Shaheed Peer Ali Marg (popularly known as airport road) and Hardinge Road cannot be seen anymore.

While the illegal speed breakers are being removed, new speed breakers, conforming to the specifications, are also being constructed at places where they are required as per norms. For instance, a new speed breaker has been constructed by removing rumble strips at the western entrance gate of airport.

A division bench of the high court comprising Chief Justice L. Narasimha Reddy and Justice Ashwani Kumar Singh on April 13 had directed the officials concerned to submit the action taken report on the illegal speed-breakers within 15 days.

Though the directive was primarily focused on national and state highways but a committee has been formed under the chairmanship of Patna district magistrate Abhay Kumar Singh to look into the speed breakers in the state capital as well.

"The committee is identifying which speed breakers are legal and which are not. The committee has also taken a decision that rumble strips should be removed from all across the city. At some places, new speed breakers conforming to the standards are being constructed in place of rumble strips," said a senior road construction department official.

Officials in the road construction department claimed that while majority of the existing speed breakers was constructed by it local residents have also built such humps by themselves at many places.

However, following the court directive, all new speed breakers would be constructed as per the Indian Road Congress specifications.

"The rule does not allow for speed breakers on high-speed roads with heavy vehicular movement. Speed breakers are made on those roads that have a school or a college, hospital and any other public institution. You cannot just make speed breakers anywhere. The size and the height of the speed breakers also need to be kept in consideration. If a speed breaker is made on a high-speed road then it is a violation of the law," said an engineer of Bihar State Road Development Corporation.

Residents also welcomed the removal of speed breakers. "There is well-marked difference between the old speed breakers and the newly constructed speed breaker at airport entrance gate. Unlike the old ones, the new speed breaker does not cause discomfort due to the sudden hump. Besides, rumble strips are the riskiest as one loses the balance of the vehicle after hitting it," said Vivek Kumar, a resident of Kankerbagh.