Utter madness

There is nothing more irritating, annoying and confusing than when a police officer takes over electronically synchronized traffic lights and creates a complete muddle of the situation when he orders motorists waiting at ‘red lights’ to proceed while those facing ‘green’ are held back. At a point of collision between a motorist coming from ‘green’, oblivious to Police command, and crashes into another vehicle, whom does the police charge for dangerous driving? Where does the Motor Traffic Law stand in such a situation?

Police overpowering traffic signals is seemingly becoming an unwritten addendum to the motor traffic law. Junctions opposite Welikada police station, Rajagiriya intersection and Borella main junction are typical examples, to quote a few, where lights are switched off completely during peak traffic times and weekends for human eyes and brains to take over from electronic eyeball and judgment.

This is a vital area where the authorities have to balance their act in fathoming whether an electronically synchronized brain or grey matter in a human psyche is more effective! Common sense will prevail that the present system is totally foolhardy which creates mayhem on roads; it tends to waste Government money on policemen’s overtime pay, aid pollution to the environment by letting engines run for longer periods than necessary and ultimately makes the traffic queues longer. In simple terms it has a totally negative effect!

Serious road accidents claiming human lives are highlighted almost on a daily basis by every media in this country. It has become an eye sore that private bus drivers overtaking all other vehicles at speed, with no regard to other road users. We hear containers colliding with petrol tankers, busses crashing into vans, callous drivers making public highways into a race track, unroadworthy vehicles while transporting 36-38 tonne weighing containers speeding and overtaking other vehicles on fast lanes while the traffic police turn a blind eye. Some juggernauts do not lock containers to trailers; some are without any locking devices at all but are placed on the flat trailer just to balance with its weight. In simple terms all these are turning to be fiends on public highways. Say no more, just think about the jack-knifing of a 40 ft container at Kelanitissa Power station recently.

What are the speed limits on Sri Lankan roads and how do they relate to motor vehicles? Hearsay stories doing rounds advise people that ‘no speed limits are in force at present pending on a court case’! On an alleged traffic offence case between Wattala Police Vs Premasena Dissanayake about two years ago, judgment has been against the police. On a Fundamental Rights case, former Chief Justice highlighted the existence of different sign boards depicting various speed limits that existed and stressed 56kmph in city limits and 72 on outside city limits.

It is apparent that in some areas police are still holding speed detectors and issue penalty notices for ‘dangerous driving’. Motorists are naturally confused. These are two different categories though, but both can contribute to accidents. With that back drop I put the million dollar question to OPA panel who offers professional advice through the ‘Daily News’. Their reply on June 24, 2010 stated as follows:

“We contacted the DIG, Police in charge of Traffic and he rightly pointed out that the Police are only the enforcement authority under the Highways Ministry. We contacted person responsible for speed limits in the RDA and according to her the speed limits of 32, 56 and 72 kmph were the old speed limits prior to 1995.

From 1995, speed limits were determined on the basis of built up areas. The speed limit of 40 kmph is applicable to three wheelers and land vehicles such as tractors etc and this speed limit for this category is applicable both in built up areas as well as in the no built up areas. All other vehicles will have a speed limit of 50 kmph in the built up areas. In the non-built up areas motor coaches and lorries will have a speed limit of 60 kmph and all other vehicles ( with exemption of three wheelers and land vehicles) will have a speed limit of 70 kmph.”

“Whilst most of the sign boards currently on display have the current speed limits, the drawings of these boards are not exactly specific. The preparations of new drawing for the sign boards with these same speed limits, as described above, are still with the Legal Draftsman’s office.” “We understand, thus, there are now four speed limits based on the category of vehicles and built up areas.........”

Four different speed limits to monitor vehicles on congested traffic? This is nothing but lunacy and no wonder police are left high and dry when it comes to enforcing the motor traffic law!

It is high time that the law makers view this chaotic and antiquated system with a view to making things simple for all, where even a magic eye of a camera can detect errant motorists.

Simultaneously, let the law enforcement authorities deploy traffic police on productive assignments rather than making them waste time at traffic lights and be seen as interfering.

Let traffic officers be strict on undisciplined drivers, those who overtake from left, motor cyclists who always ride on wrong lanes, impatient red light jumpers even at night time, three wheelers, containers and lorries on fast lanes and cyclists who always ride in the night without lights.

We are yet to see, like in other countries, mobile traffic officers on motor cycles doing rounds with a view to nab defiant motorists and taking them to task.

There is no point in choosing ‘hide outs’ or to be concealed behind trees to book law breakers and start issuing penalty notices, at times for the most negligible motor offence, just to get police officers’ duty ‘bonus points’ upgraded, but implementation of the law should be proper and effective.