Tamil Nadu tops road accidents, yet to opt for speed governance system

Even a smaller state like Kerala has successfully installed an automated speed governance system where cameras capture the number plates of over-speeding vehicles and the data is processed at a centralised control room at Eranakulam. This automated system generates about 1200 penalty bills on a daily basis and these are sent to the RC owners of the vehicles. Even vehicles of State ministers are not exempt from this drive. 

Tamil Nadu, with better roads and better road connectivity, does not have such a system, in spite of the state reporting maximum number of fatal accidents in the country for the last three years in a row. Authorities blame it on the lack of political will to usher in such a system and till date, no speed violations are being monitored on TN roads. 

According to sources, the maximum speed limits have been decided by respective district transport authorities. “The speed limits vary with the type of vehicle and areas. However, it should not exceed 90 km per hour for any type of vehicle,” a senior official attached to the State Traffic Planning Cell told DTNext. 

When contacted, the authorities claimed that a World Bank funded project is on the anvil to emulate the system implemented by the Kerala government. Highly placed sources told this newspaper that the Tamil Nadu Transport Department and the State Traffic Planning Cell have now tied up with IIT Madras. The aim is to identify the stretches of both National and State Highways for installing an automated system of speed governance (via CCTV cameras) in order to arrest the increasing  cases of fatal accidents on Tamil Nadu roads. IIT-M is expected to submit its report in another 20 days regarding the stretches that need to be covered. 

“We have a model system installed between Dindivanam and Chengalpattu where CCTV cameras are used to capture details of the vehicles that speed. The data is then processed by the respective police stations and notices are being sent to the vehicle owners,” the official added. The official said once IIT submits its report, the works for installation of such CCTV cameras would begin. However, this proposed system will also be handled by respective district transport offices and not through a centralised control room.