Awareness programme on right of way to ambulances

The City traffic police on Friday launched an awareness programme for the public on allowing right of way for ambulances.

“Most drivers have no patience. There is a lot of arrogance and very little respect for others on the road today,” Veerendra Heggade, the Dharmadhikari of Dharmasthala, said, speaking at the event.

He said that cities in India were lagging 30 years behind in using modern technology for managing traffic and people are yet to develop a sense of traffic.

Additional Commissioner (Traffic and Security) M A Saleem said there was a marginal decrease in the rate of accidents with the enforcement of lane discipline, three months ago.

“During an accident or an emergency, people don’t call for an ambulance.
“When they do call an ambulance, it is caught in traffic for long durations as people do not give priority to ambulances on the move,” Saleem said.

City Commissioner of Police Jyothiprakash Mirji said the department was considering installing sensors, a two-way device, both in the ambulance and at traffic junctions, which would turn a signal green, when the ambulance approached an intersection.

The City traffic department will embark on an awareness programme to instill traffic discipline in drivers particularly in view of the problems faced by drivers of ambulances coming from nearby taluks and the outskirts of
the City.