Indian roads set to get faster in efficiency drive
NEW DELHI: The speed limit for passenger cars on expressways may be increased from the existing 100km/h to 120km/h, and from 80km/h to 100 km/h on national highways, if the government accepts the recommendation of a committee constituted by the Union road transport ministry.
The committee has also recommended a uniform speed limit of 80kmph for two-wheelers on highways and expressways, and for heavy vehicles (buses and trucks), 90 kmph on expressways and 80 kmph on national highways.
At present, only the 165-km Yamuna Expressway, which connects Delhi to Agra, permits a speed limit of 100 kmph .
The committee, headed by Abhay Damle, joint secretary (transport), submitted its report to Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari last week. Sources said that he will take a call on the committee’s recommendations soon.
HT reported in June that Gadkari had said the ministry should consider making high- way traffic move faster, in view of the improved highway infrastructure and vehicle technology. Soon after, the committee, which also had traffic experts and stakeholders from the automobile industry, was constituted. The ministry has plans to build 1,000 km of access-controlled expressways across India in the coming 5-7 years.
Abdul Majeed, partner and auto lead, PricewaterhouseCoopers, said that compared to other countries, the speed limit recommended by the ministry are not very aggressive. “Highway infrastructure is far better than what it was ten years ago. You have many more four and six-laned highways now,” he said. However, Majeed cautions that a high speed limit will have to be accompanied by increased safety standards on the road. “Currently, drivers do not have adequate training, violation of traffic rules is rampant and enforcement is lax,” he said.
In 2015 (the latest period for which data is available), 500,000 road accidents were reported in India. National highways accounted for 28.4% of all road accidents. Also, of the 146,000 deaths in road accidents, overspeeding accounted for 44%.
Vishnu Mathur, director general, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, said that from a transport logistics point of view, higher the speed limit, better the efficiency.
“It will benefit the economy. With vehicle technology as well as quality of highways improving, we will miss the opportunity provided by the improved logistics if the speed limit continues to be what it was a decade ago.”
Mathur said vehicle safety standards have also improved manifold over the years. “There are over 60 vehicle safety norms that are now mandatory,” he said. However, Mathur agreed that safety is a big concern, considering the high number of accidents on Indian roads. “Roads have to be designed scientifically, enforcement has to be further bolstered and drivers need to be disciplined,” he said.
Many states in the United States such as Texas have speed limits of 137km/hour for passenger vehicles. The average speed limit on Germany’s famed Autobahn is 142km/hr, while some stretches have no limit at all, for some classes of vehicles.
Autobahns, however, are access controlled. A driver is unlikely to encounter casual cattle crossing them while hurtling along at over 100 kmph.