Rumble strips for road safety

After a series of fatal accidents on Palm Beach road, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) and Navi Mumbai Traffic Police have identified the accident-prone junctions and turning points on the road, and have started to install rumble strips to restrain speeding vehicles.

The speed limit on Palm Beach road is 80 km per hour, however, people often drive at over 120 km per hour. The decision to construct rumble strips has been taken since the construction of flyovers on the stretch is likely to take at least three to four years and construction of speed breakers only leads to more accidents.

"We have found that the accidents have mostly happened near junctions or at turning points. Since vehicles are generally driven at high speed on Palm Beach road, construction of speed breakers will only lead to more accidents. We have, therefore, decided to construct rumble strips at junctions and turning points. These strips will force speeding vehicles to slow down and reduce the number of accidents," said Vijay Patil, deputy commissioner of Navi Mumbai Traffic police.u00a0

The construction of rumble strips has started near Karave junction in Nerul. The strips will be painted with thermoplastic paint and fitted with blinking lights to ensure that drivers can easily spot them from a distance.u00a0

Transport experts have endorsed the decision to install rumble strips on Palm Beach road.u00a0

Sudhir Badami, a transport expert said, "Rumble strips certainly help to reduce the speed of vehicles. They will lead to a decline in number of accident cases on the road. Authorities should also install accident zone signboards near the strips."

In the past two months, four accidents have occurred on the stretch. On January 16, a 42-year-old woman died in a hit and run accident. Two days before that, a four-month-old was killed after a driver lost control of his speeding vehicle. On December 25, a 19 year-old died after his bike collided head-on with a car, while four youth lost their lives after their car rammed into a tree on the road on December 11, 2011.