Bhubaneswar, Feb. 16: Driving on the wrong lane has been a major concern for police with around 60 violators being penalised for the offence on an average a day in the city.
Suchismita Biswal, 22, a student Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT), died on February 4 after being hit by a SUV driving along the wrong lane.
Statistics available with the police revealed that 11,672 violators were caught in Bhubaneswar for the offence in 2014, which increased to 19,139 in 2015. In 2016, the cops penalised 24,276 drivers in the city for similar violations. Going by the figures, the percentage increase from 2014 to 2016 has been 108.
The police said drivers choose to drive in the wrong lane to avoid long-distance rides. "We have closed several cuts on road dividers to discourage riders from driving in the wrong lane. But despite this, a number of motorists refuse to take the right lane," said a police official.
Sriya Traffic Square is a prime example where most motorists drive along the wrong lane. Many of these motorists driving on the wrong side work in business establishments situated close to the traffic post. They are unwilling to cross Master Canteen Square and take a U-turn towards Ram Mandir Square. Instead, most of them can be spotted driving in the wrong lane at Sriya Square.
Commuters said driving in the wrong lane often created problems for them. "With heavy rush hour traffic, it is almost impossible to spot a vehicle coming from the wrong side. This often leads to accidents," said Deepak Das, a commuter.
The police said violators of right-lane driving are being penalised Rs 500 under the Odisha Urban Police Act, while violators who do not have enough money on them are fined Rs 100 under the Motor Vehicle Act.
Assistant commissioner of police (traffic), Jatindra Kumar Panda, said the cops had been sensitising motorists not to indulge in wrong lane drive. "We are also conducting surprise drives at such spots to deter commuters from driving in wrong lanes," said Panda.
Transport officials, too, said they were receiving a number of pictures and videos of wrong-lane driving from the Android-based app Ame Prahari, which was launched in October to enable citizens to send videos and photographs of traffic violators and violations. The officials said they had already started serving notices to the violators caught through this app.
