Will an FIR for wrong-side driving ease our traffic woes?
Since March, Mumbai police have registered over 8,500 FIRS for what many may call an innocuous offence
MUMBAI: On March 30, at around 8 pm, Rita Maske stepped out to deliver food to the owner of a tea stall near the international airport just off the Western Expressway. The 53-year-old homemaker from Vile Parle was walking on the footpath near the Sahara Star hotel when a motorcyclist, who was driving on the wrong side of the road, hit her and sped away. Maske lost consciousness and suffered a fracture in her right hand. A First Information Report (FIR) was registered at the Airport police station, though the motorcyclist is still at large.
Maske’s accident would have gone unreported had it not been for Mumbai police commissioner Sanjay Pandey’s instructions that all police stations register FIRS against motorists riding on the wrong side of a road. Pandey who took charge in the first week of March noted that there were several complaints about this. In his interactions over his Twitter handle, he said that such violations would find zero tolerance.
While there is no law that applies specifically to wrongside driving, most infractions by motorists are registered under section 279 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which pertains to rash driving, and section 336, which pertains to endangering life or personal property. Section 304 is applied in hit and run cases, when the victim is killed. The Motor Vehicle Act (1988) lays down traffic rules and penalties; wrong-side driving attracts a fine of Rs 500.
According to Mumbai police officials, 8,694 FIRS have been registered between March 6 — the day Pandey issued the instructions — and April 24. Contrary to popular assumption, only 392 of them are delivery agents of food apps or courier services. Officials said that the licenses of 3,623 motorists have been suspended for three months since March 6, and at least 200 motorists are booked for driving on the wrong side every day. “Most of the offenders are motorcyclists and auto drivers,” said one official of the traffic police department.
In the past two months, the highest number of FIRS has been registered in areas in Kandivli, Oshiwara, Vakola and Mulund.
“Motorists don’t understand the implications of having an FIR registered. It will take a few more months for commuters to change their perception and mind set,” said Raj Tilak Roushan, deputy commissioner of police (Traffic).
The police will begin to seize vehicles of motorists who flout traffic norms, Roushan said.
Transport analyst Sudhir Badami, who is on the Mumbai Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS) steering committee of the state government, said that the move introduced by the commissioner will change the perception of what are perceived to be “small” infractions.
“No change can take place overnight. It will take time for the offenders to understand that a short cut taken by them can ruin their career and life once they are booked in an FIR,” he said.
In a report released by Mumbai traffic police, while the total number of road crash fatalities in 2020 dropped by 45% since 2010 and by 22% since 2019, pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and three-wheeler occupants remain the most vulnerable. In 2020, they accounted for 93% of road crash fatalities in the city.
Traffic police data on black spots or accident-prone spots show that they have increased from 39 to 58 in Mumbai since 2017. The Mumbai traffic police refer to a black spot as an area where more than five people have died on account of an accident in three consecutive years. More than 42% of Mumbai’s black spots are in the eastern suburbs. On the 23.55-km Eastern Express Highway (EEH), which connects Thane to south Mumbai, most accidents occur due to speeding motorists, engineering defects, and traffic rules violations, including wrong-side driving.
The Vile Parle junction on the Western Express Highway (WEH), where Maske had her accident, and Haveli bridge, which connects Jawahar Road in Vikhroli to MG road in Ghatkopar east are two of the 30 junctions in the city where most accidents have taken place, causing at least 501 deaths and 1,172 serious injuries between 2017 and 2020.
HT visited three spots where wrong-side driving is rampant to understand why motorists play fast and loose with the rules.
The junction on SV road referred to as Adani junction, on account of the electricity substation located there, is always busy. Shankar lane connects Linking road and SV road, and extends towards the WEH through the Ashok Nagar main road and the Rajguru flyover. A one-way road between SV road and Ashok Nagar main road is used wrongly by motorists and autorickshaw drivers to escape taking a U-turn, at least a kilometre away on Shankar lane.
Suresh Rokade, senior police inspector of Kandivli traffic chowkie said a signboard indicates that the road is one-way. However, the board is partially hidden by foliage. “We catch at least seven to eight offenders daily for wrong side driving on this junction,” Rokade said.
Pravin Dhakan, a resident of Kandivli (west) said that bikers and auto drivers coming from the east use the one-way wrongly.
“The U-turn is either at Shankar lane or at Milap petrol pump, both of which are about a kilometre away in different directions,” he said.
A 50-metre road that connects the Mahatma Gandhi (MG) road to Jawahar road in Ghatkopar (east) is another common spot for wrong-side driving. Commuters coming down the Eastwest Bridge, towards Ghatkopar east, would need to take a longer circuitous route to merge with the MG road leading southwards. They would need to take Jawahar road, turn right at the BMC office, hit Upashray lane, take a right at Jethabhai lane, a left at Hingwala lane and finally a left at MG road. Instead, they prefer to take the 50m connector which is a oneway towards the east.
According to Hussain Jatkar, senior police inspector of Vikhroli traffic chowkie, at least 15 bikers are caught each day committing the offence.
Sanjay Prasad, a Public Relations executive in the Bhojpuri film industry, travels on the road daily to get to his Oshiwara office. “It will take a long time to change the mindset of the people. Police presence helps but even the police cannot be present on the spot 24 hours a day,” he said.
If you stand outside Adarsh Bar close to the Oshiwara police station junction for five minutes, it is likely that you will encounter a two-wheeler coming at you on the wrong side of the road. Motorists travel along New Link road and Oshiwara Park road — a 500-metre stretch — to reach Behram Baug. They do this as a way to avoid taking the traffic signal at the Infinity Mall signal, which would put them on the correct north-bound traffic on New Link road. Many trafficbreaking drivers honk at pedestrians outside Adarsh bar.
Dhaval Shah, a resident of Lokhandwala in Andheri (west) said that wrong side driving at this spot is extremely dangerous for motorists and pedestrians alike.
“Suspension of license for three months is not enough of a deterrent,” said Shah, who travels from Oshiwara to Jogeshwari every day for work.
Dilip Bhosle senior police inspector of Oshiwara traffic chowkie said that they have witnessed several minor accidents due to wrong side driving at that particular spot.