Hefty Traffic Fines proposed

The Maharashtra government has proposed to increase traffic fines manifold to deter vehicle owners from breaking traffic rules- this actually is long overdue and should have been implemented quite a few years ago. The trouble with rules is they are enforced by human beings who are not only under paid but also many a times not paid in time. I am sure the collection of the government through traffic fines will definitely go up in arithmetic progression, I am confident that the private collection of the traffic police will grow in geometric progression. I am sure all of you have at some point or the other experienced a traffic policeman who has come out of hiding to catch you for supposedly going through a red light – what happened after that is something each one of you needs to ask him/herself! See what I mean?!

Instead of creating more room for corruption if the government creates an infrastructure which encourages the public to use public transport instead of their own vehicles for commuting – the government would solve the problems of high pollution, wastage of fuel and reduce road congestion – all in one go. This post is not about good infrastructure but about rules made for vehicle owners as against those for pedestrians. How many subways have been built at major traffic intersections in Mumbai at huge cost to the government? How many of these subways are actually used by pedestrians as opposed to hawkers, drug addicts and beggars with no roof over their heads? Why do the pedestrians continue to walk on the road as opposed to the many footpaths which have been built in this city? All you need to do is pass by any traffic signal in Mumbai to notice that pedestrians are waiting to cross the road – guess where – yep you guessed right! They will be standing in the lane near the footpath trying to play footsie with the approaching vehicle – you will see them go forward and if the car refuses to slow down they will go backwards – and so on till they cross the road. No one has the patience to wait for the pedestrian signal to go green and then cross. All of you must have experienced and in some instances you guys would have also held up your hand to stop traffic to cross the road – no patience right? Many of you are vehicle owners who would have cursed when someone tried to cross the road by making you slow down, but I am equally confident that you too have done that at some point in your life to some other vehicle owner – when in Rome do as the Romans do – as the saying goes! So why is jaywalking not fined as rigorously and heavily as errant vehicle owners? Reducing jaywalking would ease traffic congestion to a great extent. Travel abroad and you will notice the difference - Indians who would jaywalk, would be patiently waiting for the pedestrian signal to go green to cross the road even though there is no oncoming traffic!

Coming back to traffic offences by vehicle owners – take for instance cutting lanes – tell me how many roads in Mumbai have the lanes actually been marked – most roads are actually one big lane through which three/four/five vehicles can pass! So how do you flag down a vehicle owner for cutting lanes. The cop would have one imaginary line in his mind and the vehicle owner his own – so which is the correct lane? Your guess is as good as mine – but I am betting that a crisp note exchanging hands will clear the air on who is right and who is wrong! While driving how many of you have suddenly come across a pothole, or an unmarked open drain which has made you dangerously swerve your vehicle to avoid it? That was lane cutting and you would be liable for a fine. But who will fine or punish the contractor or municipal worker who does such shoddy work and gets paid for such negligent behavior? Have you ever read about these culprits being brought to justice, even though people may have lost their lives in resulting road accidents?

You will have come across BEST bus drivers as well as private bus transporters picking up passengers by halting their vehicle right in the middle of the road holding up traffic. Similarly you would have experienced auto drivers blocking the entire road trying to overtake each other – they actually remind one of a line of pawns progressing diagonally – no way for you to go ahead without knocking one over!

Don’t get me wrong guys – like I said at the beginning of this post I am not against the fines – but a lot more can be done with very little effort to make the existing infrastructure work for us - instead of being shanghaied into believing our city will one day be akin to Shanghai! One should start at the point of issuing driving licenses itself – try getting a driving license in any of the Gulf countries, Far East, USA – you actually have to earn the right to drive a vehicle. The process is so tough that you really end up driving carefully in order not to lose the license through bad or negligent driving. Your traffic offences are monitored in such a way that your vehicle insurance premium starts going up with every traffic offence. When your pocket starts hurting you start learning automatically! In India you do not even have to go for a test to get your license – hence there is no respect for that document! The roads could be made better, the pedestrians could be disciplined, traffic cops could be paid in time and made to behave with self respect and dignity. I am sure there could be a lot more suggestions forthcoming to make driving a better experience rather than an ordeal as it is today….What say?!