Jaipur: Audit picks safety holes on southern Ring road connecting Agra road and Ajmer road

JAIPUR: The 47-km southern Ring Road connecting Agra Road and Ajmer Road has several shortcomings, a recent safety inspection by experts from Malaviya National Institute of Technology (MNIT) and the state government has found.
The experts have suggested adequate illumination of many stretches of the roadway during the night, installation of active speed-calming measures and use of retro-reflective pavement markers as per guidelines for safe mobility during night.
The height of the crash barrier on the road is less than the norms and there is no reflective tape, said the inspection report. Moreover, in the absence of planned median cuts, bikers are found crossing the road abruptly from various spots, which increases the possibility of accidents.
During the safety audit, the SOS helpline box was also found defunct. A senior JDA official said, “JDA will soon rectify all the shortcomings mentioned in the experts’ report. No audit was carried out after the ring road was made operational. The decision was taken to carry out the audit and make it an accident-free stretch”.
The safety audit was conducted by 37 experts, including engineers from consulting companies, highway construction companies, representatives from JDA, public works department and transport inspectors. There were 12 groups with three participants each, who were allotted 2 km stretches. The teams were asked to carry out safety audit both during mornings and evenings.
This safety audit was a part of the training, and the participants submitted a report to JDA. “MNIT has been authorised by the Union ministry of road transport and highways to conduct a road safety audit course. The objective of this course is to ensure that there are enough safety auditors available in the country as infrastructure development work grows rapidly and thousands of kilometres of highways are being laid across the country,” said a JDA official.