'Head-breakers, not speed-breakers'

'Head-breakers, not speed-breakers'
By: Madhusudan Maney Date: 2009-06-03 Place:Bangalore



Traffic expert says 90 pc of city's traffic humps are illegal and need to go. BBMP and traffic police blame each other for the mess

Lakhs of rupees will go down the drain with the court ordering the removal of illegal humps in the city.

That would be around 90 per cent of them, says professor M N Sreehari, traffic advisor to the state government and member of Agenda for Bangalore Infrastructure Development (ABIDe).

"Bangalore is notorious for badly-planned and poorly-designed road humps. They are head-breakers instead of speed-breakers. Almost 90 per cent of them go against the norms of the Indian Road Congress (IRC)," he said.

The IRC, a statutory body, does not recommend humps as it is dangerous for motorists. If at all, they are suited on minor rather than major or cross roads.

He says around 80-90 road humps are more than enough for Bangalore. What's more, the BBMP has decided on 200 humps across the city and has completed work on 121 so far. "The remaining will be completed in some time," BBMP Gopalswamy, the engineer-in-chief said.

According to Sreehari, speed-breakers should be constructed and removed in the presence of traffic enforcement officials, BBMP engineers and traffic experts. Removing humps is just as important as it can leave behind a pot-holed road which is more dangerous than the existing hump.

We want one!

But in Bangalore, most humps are recommended by people living in the area after an accident occurs.

While Sreehari says there are four to five accidents a year due to road humps, a senior police officer at the traffic department said the department did not have specific records of deaths due to road humps. "However, they are minimal compared to other causes," he said.

Besides, laying humps, illuminating roads and pruning trees comes under BBMP's jurisdiction, he said.

Not us, says BBMP

The BBMP, of course, has another story. Gopalswamy said the BBMP puts humps only in consultation with the police department.

"Sometimes, when an accident takes place, the police department takes the decision to put a hump there. Many of these have been put without consulting or intimating the BBMP."

The long and short of it

Professor M N Srihari tells us how traffic humps should be built:

>> They should be a perfect parabola with a 12- to 15 cm rise in the centre and should be 3.5 m across the road. It should be located not more than 3 m from the junction towards the cross road and the area should have proper lighting so that it's visible to motorists. It should also be marked with 'V' stripes to differentiate it from a zebra crossing.

>> Road studs/cat eyes should be introduced 1 m before the hump and advance signboards should be installed at the stopping sight distance (10-15 m) and another at the intermediate stopping sight distance (25-30 m) based on the speed on the crossroads. Humps are not recommended where the road slopes.

>> The present-day concept is to have a hump as well as pedestrian crossing where the centre is flat with interlocking blocks for pedestrian movement.

>> The slide slopes, 3 m in width, extend up to 2 m on either side. The idea is also to avoid damage to low-floor vehicles and the road.

It costs around Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 for a normal parabolic hump and around Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 for a rubber hump which absorbs energy in an efficient manner.

These are advised for low-traffic locations, Sreehari said.

Here's what long-suffering motorists say about the city's speed-breakers

There are too many humps in the city and 80 per cent are without markings. Because of lack of visibility, I have gone over the humps at the same speed and once I even fell. Luckily, there was no major injury. These speed-breakers are more dangerous at night. They are uneven and not consistent in size. Four-wheelers with low floors get damaged because of these humps
Srinivas Rao, motorist

There was a speed-breaker close to my shop. In a week, at least 3-4 two-wheeler riders would fall since the hump was not laid properly. I would offer first-aid to the people
Srinivas M, owner of a medical store in Hebbal

One night, while riding my two-wheeler near Sumangali Sevashram, Cholanagar, I saw the hump only after coming very close since it had not been painted.
I tried to apply the brakes but it was too late. I fell, injuring my face, hands and legs. I spent Rs 20,000 and nearly three months to recover fully
Jagadish, motorist