City police set to measure noise level at traffic signals

Cops decide to try out Mumbai experiment

Taking a cue from its Mumbai counterpart, the Hyderabad Traffic Police has asked the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to instal meters to measure noise at traffic junctions. This, they said, would show motorists how much they are honking and the noise levels.

Mr Anil Kumar, additional commissioner of police (traffic) told Deccan Chronicle: “We have written to the GHMC to set up these monitors. The cost would be borne by GHMC not the traffic department. We are waiting for the go ahead from the civic body, after that we will give them a list of areas that see incessant honking.”

Traffic police asks GHMC to instal meters at traffic junctions to measure the noise created by motorists who honk horns.

When contacted, GHMC commissioner D.S. Lokesh Kumar confirmed that the Hyderabad traffic police had written such a letter and the civic body was consulting with Mumbai traffic officials.

“We are asking the Mumbai traffic police to give us details of where they procured the meters from. We will have to see the cost and availability of the equipment before starting the pilot project,” he said.

It may be recalled that on February 1, municipal administration minister K.T. Rama Rao had asked top officials of the municipal and police departments to launch an enforcement initiative to reduce noise pollution at traffic signals akin to the one in Mumbai, which prolongs the red light at signals if the decibel level from honking by impatient drivers gets too high.

According to a viral video, the Mumbai traffic police has set a noise limit of 80 decibels. If the noise at the intersection, when the signal is red, exceeds the mark, the waiting time is automatically doubled. The Mumbai traffic police says the experiment is to ensure that motorists waiting at traffic signals do not unnecessary honk while they wait for the signal to turn green.

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