Mumbai's Traffic Nightmare

14th March 2010.

Dear Kishore and friends,

Thank you very much for sending me various updates on Traffic Meetings and the like. I also thank you for publicizing Adv Armin Vandrewala’s efforts for better traffic management through a PIL. I was very keen to attend the meeting organized jointly by the NPCCA, OCRA and the 3rd and 4th Pasta Lane Support Group, particularly as it was being addressed by Mr Barve, a fairly senior IPS Officer. However, I was quite disappointed on reading the report of the meeting in the DNA of 11th March.

According to the DNA report, JCP Traffic, Mr Barve, attributed the chaotic traffic situation to the poor design of roads, lack of education of signs, and the indiscipline amongst the motorists. He further said “Enforcement is the last of the 3important factors for good traffic management. Unfortunately, it is at the top.”
Now I just don’t understand this, Mr Barve. If the roads were perfect, if the people were fully aware of the signs and if the motorists were disciplined, do we really need you at all?!! It is because of these shortcomings that you are there – so we would really like it if the Traffic police did their job instead of passing the bureaucratic buck!

We do appreciate the efforts of the Traffic police to curb drunken driving. However, we expect more from the Police, not shallow reasons for inaction.
I understand that Armin Vandrewala’s PIL is the outcome of motorists halting ON the zebra crossing. Why can this not be stopped by the Traffic cops even when they are posted there? A classic case of chaos is the Churchgate-Eros junction in the morning and evening hours. Motorists halt ON the zebra crossing, the pedestrians walk at will, the honking reaches deafening levels – and the cops turn a deaf ear and blind eye to these obvious violations. We do realize and understand that police are short-staffed and overworked, but surely that is no reason to abdicate duty and responsibility!

That brings me to the next point – Jaywalking. I believe there are laws against jaywalking. But do the traffic police enforce them? No, Sir, hardly ever. A 4-lane road from Eros to Churchgate station becomes a 2-lane path only because pedestrians walk on the roads instead of using the subway. Ditto at Metro cinema junction. The road from Eros to LIC building has wide footpaths without encroachments. Yet pedestrians walk on the road instead of using the broad footpaths built for them. The traffic police are again oblivious to this! We do have good, broad roads in South Bombay with wide footpaths from the British era. Perhaps the traffic police have not noticed this. Let them maintain at least this patch!

What is very unfortunate is that Adv Vandrewala’s PIL has had no effect on the traffic police at all. I wonder if Mr Barve would trot out these excuses before the High Court when the PIL comes up for hearing. On reading the DNA report I was also disappointed that Sudhir Badami and Nitin Dossa were not given adequate time to make their points. I am sure they would have had something more positive and constructive to say about the traffic nightmare than the reported ‘reasons’ given by Mr Barve.

Yours sincerely,
Deepak Tralshawala