The Tata Nano which recently hit the roads, could worsen road traffic by adding to the growth of private vehicles in the coming days, according to a Delhi High Court Judge. The Court made the remarks while delivering its verdict in the BMW hit-and-run case involving Sanjeev Nanda in which his sentence was reduced to two years from five years for mowing down six persons ten years ago. The Court also pulled up the Centre for its “apathy” towards public safety on roads and made a slew of recommendations for road safety.
“All Indian cities are already struggling with traffic flow problem due to various types of vehicles on the road, lack of need-based road and traffic design and engineering and the unchecked growth of private vehicles and with the entry of the new cheap car Nano on the road, the situation is likely to get worsen,” Justice Kailash Gambir said.
“There are no stop signs, no speed limits and as heavy vehicles go zig-zak on the roads, it is hard to ignore the disturbing reality that many commercial and private drivers are drunk and no one checks them,” the court said.
Loading ...
July 21, 2009 at 10:14 am
Well if anyone/anything is to be blamed then the nano should be the last thing on that list. It may worsen the traffic condition but then it also provides inherent safety for the small families that comes with the driving of a car over a scooter/car. And moreover the luxury of a 4 wheeler should never remain limited to the privileged few. Why cant steps be taken to improve and strengthen public transport facilities which will weaken the need for private cars and in turn improve the traffic situation?
July 21, 2009 at 2:39 pm
100000 Nanos to get on the road in the next one year. Basically 8333 new Nano cars to be added every month to the roads. I do not think this is so alarming considering the numbers sold per month of other brands as well. Maruti Swifts sell around that number and so does the Ritz.
:-) – there are more of the Altos running around per month than the Nano’s will for the next one year.
Civic authorities need to keep watch on the number of vehicles on the roads and ensure there is enough traffic police coverage for busy thouroughfares and add functional signals and road signs. No need to panic so much.
July 21, 2009 at 2:55 pm
Sushil, I think the problem is that more and more Nano’s will hit the roads instead of two wheelers. Currently though the sales of the Tata Nano will be less, it will pick up at a later stage.
July 22, 2009 at 4:43 pm
It is going to add lil fuel to the burning issue. I dont have very good opinion about Tata when it comes to quality and safety. Only time will testify sturdyness of Nano and also on how much it burn your pocket on the maintenence front. One thing the middle class family is forgetting is the maintenence cost (running cost, insurance, service cost) for a car. If they start to realise that then Nano will be just another car in the car market.
I am just waiting to see for how long Tata is going to maintain the 1 lakh promise. The cost will go up definitely in teh coming years. Also the base version doesnt have any features. People will definitely think about the cost if they choose to own a fully loaded Nano. If they are sensible they should opt for more sophisticated second hand santro’s, zen’s, palio’s or even older sedans.
Coming to the traffic issue..
Most of the traffic issues we see today is because of our insensible driving habits. If we all follow and drive our vehicles with some discipline then i bet that your commutation time will definitely drop down by 30% (no data ;).
I think our judicial system on traffic regulation must be streamlined and enforced strictly. Without that our country’s traffic system will not improve.
I will drive properly only if i know that i am being monitored sternly by law and that i will be severly penalised if i dare to violate the traffic rules laid down by our government.
The change should start from ourself to make a better road to drive.
July 22, 2009 at 5:47 pm
Rajan, you have summed it up very well. One man can’t alone win the battle, we all have to change our attitude to make the roads a better place to drive.