Replace dividers with flush medians on Yamuna Expressway to reduce accidents: IIT-Delhi report
The draft safety audit report which was submitted Wednesday suggested eight ways, including installation of more traffic signages. IIT-Delhi submitted the report to the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) which controls the expressway.
The Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi on Wednesday said one of the ways to reduce accidents on the Yamuna Expressway would be replace dividers with flush medians.
Accidents have been frequent on the 165km access controlled highway that connects Greater Noida with Agra. In latest one last Monday, eight people on a sleeper bus were killed after it rammed a truck on the highway. Flush medians are white diagonal lines, painted down the centre marking an area about the width of a car. They are called ‘flush’ because they are not raised, just painted to demarcate the median.
The draft safety audit report which was submitted Wednesday suggested eight ways, including installation of more traffic signages. IIT-Delhi submitted the report to the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida) which controls the expressway.
In the draft report, Iit-delhi has suggested that the highway operator, Jaypee Infratech Limited, which built the expressway, should focus on these eight points, besides taking other steps. We are studying this report and will discuss it with Iit-delhi experts on Thursday, paving the way for its implementation in the next six months,” Arun Veer Singh, chief executive officer, Yeida, said.
“Key suggestions are removal of the divider and installation of more traffic signages. But we will finalise suggestions after discussions with the Iit-delhi team,” Singh said.
Dr S Velmurugan, senior principal scientist, Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), said, “Introduction of flush median will certainly help in reducing accidents on the Yamuna Expressway as it provides comfort to motorists during driving.”
The requirement for flush medians was first felt on the Mumbai-pune Expressway in view of the frequent accidents on that stretch and it was successfully tried there. “However, the government decided to install crash barriers to ensure vehicles do not cross over to the other side. The flush median helps stopping glare from vehicles plying in opposite direction. Flush median can help provide a safer ride on the Expressway, but authorities always have a choice of installing crash barriers,” Anil Chhikara, transport expert with the Delhi transport department, said.
Yeida, in August 2018, had hired Iit-delhi for conducting the safety audit of the expressway that passes through six UP districts – Gautam Buddh Nagar, Aligarh, Mathura, Hathras, Agra and Bulandshahr.
Following criticism from the Supreme Court, which is hearing a petition seeking motorists’ safety on the expressway, the UP government had directed officials to step up enforcement to contain speeding and other traffic violations. But the court was not satisfied with the safety measures taken so far, officials said.
On March 6, the Allahabad High Court had directed UP government and other respondents to file their replies by April 9 on a PIL alleging non-compliance of road safety measures on the Expressway.
In the last six years, as many as 705 people were killed in accidents on Yamuna Expressway, claimed the petition filed by one Bharti Kashyap.
The petitioner had alleged that due to non-compliance of road safety measures on the Yamuna Expressway, a large number of accidents were taking place.
“Our objective is to take the required steps to ensure safety of motorists. We will ensure that the suggestions, after discussions, are implemented at the earliest,” Yeida CEO said.