The Kerala High Court on Wednesday ordered the district police chief (Kochi city) and the regional transport authority (RTA) to “immediately” issue orders to prohibit the use of horns by private buses in the city and enforce lane discipline. . has been widely welcomed.
Stakeholders are bound to follow the directions, as the High Court would clearly have issued the direction after much observation and analysis, said MB Satyan, who once had a fleet of 10 public transport buses. “The bus operators may very well take up the difficulties, if any, of the police and MVD officials by following the instructions. But there is no doubt that frequent and unnecessary honking, often using polyphonic or air horns, should be stopped in view of the adverse effect on one’s hearing and mental health,” he said.
He hoped that a digital timetable, on which work is in progress, would put an end to the dispute between bus operators regarding conflicts in timing of operational services. “Many bus operators like me are surrendering permits due to reasons like unhealthy competition and poor working environment. Now I have only one bus left.”
An ardent supporter of the need for public transport to reduce congestion and pollution, Motor Vehicle Inspector, Bijulal Ram spoke of the need for a scientific monitoring system to monitor buses, as a limited number of entrepreneurs are vested with responsibility. has been done. operation of a special service. “An open but scientifically regulated market that provides quality service is the need of the hour and weed out unscrupulous operators who take law into their own hands. For this, different types of eco-friendly buses should be allowed, with different seating capacity and even plying through side roads.
Ernakulam Deputy Commissioner of Police Kuriakos Vu said, “We have taken the High Court’s direction in the right spirit and have planned a week-long awareness campaign, after which it will be implemented.” “A drive against the drivers of drunken buses started on Thursday. On their part, members of the public should share photos, videos and other information on violation of rules by buses and others on traffic eye number 62381 00100.
A senior official of the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD), on condition of anonymity, said the High Court’s directions would be easier to implement if civic agencies cleared encroached roads and created dedicated parking lots. He said that the agencies which have the roads are duty bound to have ready bus bays and dedicated auto stands so that the traffic is not obstructed.