Hyderabad: An analysis of road accidents on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) found that 33% of accidents occurred due to drowsiness or sleep deprivation, 25% due to reckless driving, 15% due to overspeeding, and 14% due to tyre bursts.This was announced on Tuesday following an inter-departmental coordination meeting attended by officials from the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), Transport Commissioner Ilambarthi, officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), Hyderabad Police Commissioner V.C. Sajjanar, and other officers from the three police commissionerates.Representatives of IRB, which undertakes maintenance work on the Outer Ring Road (ORR), gave a PowerPoint presentation to officials on the measures being implemented. The ORR belongs to HMDA.“Average daily traffic on ORR is 2.8 lakh vehicles. Five to six road accidents occur on the ORR every day. There is a need to work in coordination and take steps to bring this number down to zero,” Sajjanar said in a press note following the meeting.Officials said vehicles must not be stopped on the ORR except in the event of a breakdown. “If stopping is unavoidable, commuters must immediately inform the helpline, ensure adequate safety precautions, and park the vehicle in the extreme left lane,” officials said at the meeting.To create awareness, safety messages will be sent to commuters’ mobile phones as they enter the ORR. Police said measures should be taken to reduce emergency response times and recommended utilising the services of traffic marshals.Speaking on the occasion, Transport Commissioner Ilambarthi said the department is taking all necessary measures to curb accidents. These include increasing CCTV coverage, implementing recent Supreme Court guidelines, and other measures. Officials were directed to place special emphasis on inspecting vehicle fitness and tyre quality. “There is a need to conduct a mandatory monthly review meeting exclusively on ORR road safety,” Ilambarthi said.
