Bhubaneswar, Nov. 1: The state transport department has decided to replace traditional speed breakers with rumblers to prevent accidents.

The government has decided to replace speed breakers on national highways and state highways with rumblers within a month.

Rumblers are a variation of speed breakers in which one rumbler has several bumps that are low and spread across a certain length of the road at short and regular intervals.

Transport officials said rumblers were a better alternative to speed breakers as they can stretch for metres doing the job of slowing down vehicles without causing road accidents.

"During night time, drivers often fail to see the speed breakers on the roads, which leads to accidents. Besides, speed breakers are also known to cause damage to vehicles," said a transport official.

State transport minister Ramesh Majhi said the state government had asked the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and public works department to replace the speed breakers.

"We have found that 63 per cent of the victims of road accidents are in the age group of 21 years and 44 years. So, the government has decided to take up a massive awareness drive among the drivers," said Majhi.

Transport officials said overloaded vehicles and speeding vehicles would be seized and the driving licence of the violators cancelled.

"We have also recently launched an Android-based app - Ame Prahari - for citizens to send pictures and videos of vehicles flouting the norms,"said a transport official. "So far, around 900 users have downloaded the app. We have been receiving pictures and videos of overloading, triple riding and motorcyclists riding without helmets," he said.

In April, 27 people were killed after a bus carrying a jatra troupe skidded off the road and fell into a gorge in Deogarh district.

Further investigation had revealed that the fitness of the vehicle expired three years ago.