In the first 100 days since its inauguration, the Samruddhi Expressway has witnessed as many as 900 accidents, including many fatal. A study by the Regional Transport Office of the Maharashtra government revealed that these accidents had claimed 31 lives until March 2023.
Taking note of this, the authorities have now decided to introduce mandatory counselling of drivers at all entry points of the expressway. In addition, the State Transport Department and the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) officials held a review meeting.
It was decided that mandatory counselling of drivers would be organised at all eight entry points of the expressway. The focus of the counselling will be on curbing overspeeding. For this, eight counselling centres will be set up in the Nagpur-Shirdi section. There will be 30-minute to 1-hour counselling sessions for drivers by RTO officials to curtail overspeeding which has resulted in the highest number of accidents.
The counselling session will begin with a short film on road safety, followed by a question paper solving by the driver and a pledge to not indulge in dangerous driving. The drivers will also be given information about the dangers of under/over-inflated and worn-out tyres.
As per the analysis of accident data, mechanical breakdowns due to the overspeeding of vehicles accounted for over 400 accidents. In addition, punctures and tyre bursts led to over 130 and 108 casualties, respectively. Similarly, vehicles running out of fuel contributed to 14 per cent (126) accidents on the portion of the expressway opened for traffic.
