HSE
Need for Speed Breakers before Kadugodi Over Bridge
The connecting road from Hoskote to Hope Farm area of Whitefield Bangalore has been relayed beautifully by the authorities. The work has been done in such a way that the road till the Kadugodi Over Bridge is smooth and in a normal drivable condition as any other standard road. However, this is only on one side. The opposite side of the road still has patches done on a temporary basis that a heavy rain followed by a few heavy trucks can bring it back to the old dangerous condition.
The danger here is not any of these. With the completion of the road work, the traffic has gained momentum in terms of speed. This includes the buses and heavy trucks. A U-turn exists near the bridge making it easy for residents of nearby communities to cross over to the other side of the road. However, the removal of a speed breaker that existed is now causing lot of inconvenience and nearby situations for the drivers to turn and proceed. The bikes, trucks and buses are all in a hurry and neither stop nor reduce the speed!. There is also another serious danger of children from an apartment complex nearby crossing over the road to take their school bus.
Hope, the responsible authorities open their eyes immediately on this serious HSE issue and resolve it by a standard and non-life threatening speed breaker before the U-Turn.
There is one more activity that has to be noted and actions to be taken to avoid dangers and inconvenience to traffic. It is the use of this road by heavy trucks. Many times they breakdown on the bridge causing traffic delays. Control measures have to be made to keep these trucks away from this road till Hope Farm area.
There is one more activity that has to be noted and actions to be taken to avoid dangers and inconvenience to traffic. It is the use of this road by heavy trucks. Many times they breakdown on the bridge causing traffic delays. Control measures have to be made to keep these trucks away from this road till Hope Farm area.
Accidents have to be averted by taking necessary safety measures before and not after they have happened and valuable life lost.
Ramesh Menon
15 September 2014
Who will clean the bridge? – Kadugodi Railway Pedestrian Over Bridge – a HSE issue in the making!
Very soon we will be celebrating the 1st birthday of the Kadugodi Pedestrian Overbridge.
Each time I visit and walk through it, I remember the efforts done to have it a reality.
Like every other government or public sector initiatives, this too have its own perils and problems now.
First and foremost is the accumulation of waste all along. A day after a rain, it is very difficult to walk across due to the smell of the decomposition of leaves and other materials, including excreta of human or animals!
Lack of adequate lighting facilities are another problem that is dangerous to all, especially women and children who has to use it during late hours.
Add to it, the line up of small time vendors, who are increasing one by one and making it there own!
Who will do the regular maintenance and cleaning of the bridge? may be a question asked between various authorities involved? Is it the BBMP who is responsible? Or is it the Railway authorities? While they continue to discuss and delay before coming on to a decision and action, let us join hands together and do something urgently.
October 2nd (Gandhi Jayanthi) is nearing. Why not include the cleaning of Kadugodi Railway Pedestrian Over Bridge as one your Social Responsibility activity associated with it.
Thanks to Sri Balasubramaniam of Golden Blossom Apartment who pointed out to this HSE issue in our area.
Thanks to Sri Balasubramaniam of Golden Blossom Apartment who pointed out to this HSE issue in our area.
Ramesh Menon
15 September 2014
New road will ease traffic – Letters to the editor – The National 15 September 2014
New road will ease traffic
I am sure commuters will be relieved when the road works are complete in the Al Wahda Mall area (Road works expected to ease access to Al Wahda Mall, September 14).
Apart from congestion, the bus stop dedicated to the shopping complex posed a visual obstruction for drivers exiting the mall. Another shortcoming was the lack of sunshades for bus passengers. These two issues, I hope, will be resolved.
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
Pedestrian bridge fails to lure capital jaywalkers
ABU DHABI // Residents and visitors darting through high-speed traffic to get to Abu Dhabi Mall is an all-too-common sight.
The “no pedestrian” signs, a footbridge across to the mall and another near Le Meridien Hotel are being routinely ignored by many and even a Dh200 fine for jaywalking has failed to deter hasty pedestrians.
At 4pm on Monday, in a 30-minute period The National counted 42 pedestrians crossing three lanes of traffic to and from Abu Dhabi Mall. Less than half that number took the stairs.
Many find it easier to take the risk and dash across the street. Among the jaywalkers were two couriers, a woman and her young daughter, a pregnant woman, two women wearing abayas, an Abu Dhabi Co-op staffer with a trolley filled with groceries, men in business suits, and groups of mall shop workers.
A 27-year-old banker, who did not wish to be named, said a jaywalking ticket would not deter him from crossing illegally.
“I got a fine about three years ago,” he said. “I’m so tired and I just want to get into my car now. I just don’t care if I get a fine right now.”
In March 2008, police raised the fines for jaywalking to Dh200 from Dh50, saying the lower penalty had failed to deter pedestrians.
The elevator installed near the pedestrian bridge had also done little to encourage pedestrians to use it, he said.
“It takes five minutes each to get up and down,” he said. “They need to do something about it.”
On Monday, the entrance to the elevator was cordoned off by police tape.
“This elevator is for the physically handicapped, visually impaired persons and senior citizens only,” a sign read.
A security guard said jaywalking tended to be a group activity.
“At 6pm, they all come in groups,” he said. “It’s illegal and dangerous, but they prefer to cross the road.”
Two Filipina service crew were apologetic when asked why they had crossed the road instead of using the footbridge.
“We’re really sorry,” one said. “We know it’s wrong but we’re late for work.”
Police are stationed near the mall to conduct random inspections and issue jaywalking fines.
“They’re usually here at 7pm,” the mall guard said.
Sajith Raj, 27, a fireman in Abu Dhabi for five years, said it did not make sense for people to dash across lanes of traffic and put themselves in harm’s way.
“I always use the bridge when I visit the mall,” said Mr Raj, who crossed over with four friends. “Apart from being dangerous and illegal, a lot of time is wasted waiting until the vehicles pass.”
Mani Alumuthu, 42, a marketing officer who has lived in Abu Dhabi for four years, agreed.
“The Government built this bridge with the pedestrians’ safety in mind, but unfortunately only a few are using it.”
In February, Abu Dhabi Municipality announced measures to improve the safety of pedestrians and road users. Pavements have since been widened and standardised, new fencing to prevent jaywalking has been erected and electronic directional signs have been installed.
The Abu Dhabi Police Traffic and Patrol Directorate reported in July that its campaign “Towards Reducing Serious Injuries and Death Rates Caused by Run-Over Accidents” resulted in a 59 per cent fall in deaths caused by run-over incidents in the past five years.
“But the majority of the residents lack a safe traffic culture,” said Ramesh Menon, a technical officer at an oil firm in Abu Dhabi and a resident for 25 years.
“It’s very sad to see women with their children who repeatedly cross the road in undesignated areas. They are supposed to educate them and spread road safety awareness and help save lives.”
All pedestrians and cyclists should remember they have a key responsibility for their own safety, said Dino Kalivas, chairman of the driver education and training committee at the International Road Federation.
“They should stop one step back from the kerb or shoulder of the road if there is no walkway and listen in all directions for approaching traffic,” he said.
“They should also think about whether it is safe to cross the road, when the road is clear or all traffic has stopped, and observe the traffic lights and signals.”
rruiz@thenational.ae
Safer roads require better monitoring – The National Dt 02 September 2014
Safer roads require better monitoring
In reference to your story, Heavy traffic but no major road issues as UAE goes back to school (September 1), it is indeed fortunate that no untoward incidents occurred on the first day of the school after summer break.
However, yesterday I witnessed examples of reckless driving.
One involved a bus carrying labourers on Sheikh Zayed Street along Abu Dhabi’s eastern corniche. It recklessly cut across lanes and sped off. It had no signs on it to indicate which company was providing the service.
This shows the importance of the police monitoring the roads from their control room so that when this kind of dangerous driving is detected, a patrol car can intervene before an accident follows.
I also believe this class of vehicles should be restricted to the slow lanes.
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
The National Dt. 02 September 2014
To read it in original, please visit The National online
Petrol station employees need shaded areas – The National Dt. 20 August 2014
Petrol station employees need shaded areas
Driving between Abu Dhabi and Dubai regularly, I have noticed that many petrol stations lack shade in the areas where diesel and special fuels are served. This is a cause for concern as the staff have to work all day under the open sky. I am sure their problems do not end at night, or even during the winter.
I request the fuel company to consider installing shades over all serving points at every fuel station.
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
The National, Dt. 20 August 2014
Pledge: Make UAE Roads Safer
Are you a resident of UAE and holds a driving license? Then, it is time for you to visit:
Drivers and Passengers taking the pledge will commit themselves to the following 4 points;
√ YES – Seat belts – by EVERYBODY in your car!
√ YES – Indicators – every time you change lanes!
ø NO – Speeding!
ø NO – Mobile Phone: not without proper hands-free equipment!
The UAE has one of the highest per-capita road fatalities globally and we experience shortcomings of Road Safety on a daily basis. ‘Road injury’ is the number 1 cause of premature death in the UAE (according to a Global Burden of Disease study), and accidents are the number 2 killer in the UAE with traffic related accidents representing about 2/3 of all accidents. Clearly, this is avoidable!
RoadSafetyUAE.com want to ‘make a difference’ and this needs a strong voice. This is the reason, why we team up with media partners, corporate supporters, and governmental entities like RTA, to help us ‘spread the word’.
We need YOUR VOICE, and the voices of all road traffic participants of the UAE! We need your voice to clearly state: ‘I commit myself to MAKE UAE’s ROADS SAFER!’ – and to sign our pledge!
…and please: forward the pledge to your family, friends, colleagues – whoever you care about!
For 2014, we are aiming for 100,000 pledges by year end. Maybe we achieve even more! Together, we’ll celebrate and decide our game plan for the future. With 100,000 of us standing strong for the cause, we will for sure improve the safety on our roads.
There are definitely additional important points of road safety, but for our initial pledge we want motorists to commit to those 4. In future pledges, additional points of road safety will be included.
Will your pledge make a difference and what is the purpose of the pledge? Possessing a driving license proves, that we know the road rules and the proper road behavior. Taking the pledge is a concrete action of rationalizing and reminding ourselves of how to do it right. Reading and discussing is one thing, but actively taking the pledge is a much more a testimony of our commitment to increase road safety. Please also refer to our ‘Topics & Tips section’!
Certainly, in the initial phases of the pledge, traffic participants, who already have a high conduct of road safety will make the pledge. However, they are encouraged to forward to pledge to other traffic participants with improvement potentials, or with a low conduct of road safety! It is in the interest of those they forward the pledge to! The more traffic participants will go through this process of rationalization by signing the pledge, the more the level of road safety will improve.
By forming a group, we can accomplish difficult goals that we might have trouble achieving alone. Like-minded people can help support the cause of improved road safety and the group momentum can positively influence positive behavioral change and ensure that we follow through on our good intentions. We need to ensure a culture of looking after each other on the road – and taking the pledge is a good start!
Inviting all companies, educational institutions and organizations sign the pledge, and also to encourage their employees, customers, students and other stakeholders to sign, too. It will help organizations develop a systematic approach to managing the key risks arising from road transport, thereby contributing to successful road safety outcomes.
Appending below is the support and call by the Ambassador of India, H.E. T.P. Seetharam in support of this initiative.
Please share the link, spread the word around and let there be less accidents as possible.
Thank you and best wishes in advance,
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
Windows in high-rise buildings need to be properly secured – Gulf News Dt. 14 August 2014
When parking my car at a multi-level car park in Abu Dhabi, I heard the sound of two sets of children playing nearby. One was from the ground level where a group of children were playing football. Searching for the other set, my eyes reached the top floor of a highrise building. I was shocked to see that two windows of an apartment were left open and a set of children were stretching themselves out and trying some tricks.
It was indeed shocking for me! They had clearly seen me standing below and observing them for a long time. As if one group of children seemed to have gotten the message, suddenly one of the windows shut and my focus was now on the other one, where the remaining children continued their activities.
I didn’t wait any longer and went ahead and alerted the watchman of the building. He told me that he was helpless, as the children never listened to him.
I was fearing three different types of dangers. First, the window panels of such buildings are mostly easily accessible. What happens, if the children or even if it is adults, slip and fall?
Second was the danger of the items kept on the window slab. What happens, if one of the item falls down through the open window and someone happens to be passing by or standing below at that crucial moment?
Third and not of least importance is the mischievous act that many residents have had to experience. Some children throw water bottles or cans or even plastic bags filled with water at pedestrians who are passing by the building. A few days ago, my wife and I escaped such an act by a whisker!
It doesn’t end there, these windows are used many a times by residents to dry their laundry. The windows are left partially open and the clothes act as an eyesore to a beautiful city image.
Authorities in the capital have asked for a mandatory lock for windows on highrise buildings. I request authorities and building owners to make a quick check and make sure that it is installed wherever it is not.
In addition, reputed organisations should cross check that the apartments where the employees are living have all the required safety equipment installed.
Let us all work together to put an effort to make safety a core value that can never be ignored even for a moment. Let no accidents, or even death, occur due to ignorance or carelessness.
The reader is a technical officer based in Abu Dhabi.
Be a community reporter. Tell us what is happening in your community. Send us your videos and pictures at readers@gulfnews.com
Don’t get killed while driving – Gulf News – 3 August 2014
Don’t get killed while driving
Authorities need to step up to educate drivers on road safety and the importance of patience on the road.
• By Ramesh Menon
• Gulf News Published: 13:23 August 2, 2014
The other day, as I was dropping my son to the airport amidst the afternoon traffic, we witnessed a young man riding a sports bike at a furious pace, cutting across traffic lanes. Suddenly, the car ahead of him stopped, and the young man was left with no option than to hit the car. We watched as he toppled at least three times above and on top of the car ahead and fell down. There he lay motionless and we were speechless.
Turns out, there was an accident that happened further down the road and that was the reason for the traffic and a police patrol was already on their way to assist.
The accident that we witnessed will remain in my memory for a very long time, as it felt so unreal, like it was a movie.
Furthermore, for me as a person, bikes on UAE roads are always scary as they are not meant to be safe while driven on these roads.
Memories of two incidents that happened a few years ago keep on coming to my mind and is the reason for my aggressive campaigning for road safety.
First is the death of my brother-in-law in a bike accident in 2001 by a tractor driver in Bengaluru, India.
Second is more serious as it involved a whole family, including my mathematics teacher from school. They died as their car was hit by a speeding car and causing the entire family to burn to death as they travelled from Abu Dhabi to Dubai.
While the fate of the young man involved in the accident that happened the other day is not known to me, I definitely know that it was an incident that could easily have been avoided.
There is a strong need for patience and this needs to be educated to our young drivers by the authorities. Especially bike riders and those who have just got their driving license.
You don’t put a full stop to your life in thsi manner. Safety is of utmost importance, therefore we should be alert and cautious at all times.
To read it in original, please visit Gulf News online.
Strict rules and training needed – Letters to the editor – The National
Strict rules and training needed
It is very sad to read that an accident of the kind described in your article (38 workers injured in Sharjah bus crash, July 22) has happened on our roads once again.
Looking at the efforts by the authorities to prevent such accidents and the results achieved thus far, it is promising to note that they have become less frequent.
However, in order to get even better results, there is one option that ought to be implemented. The law should be amended to give no leeway above the stated speed limit for drivers of commercial or public transport vehicles. This would include 15-seater vans and minibuses, as well as full-size buses and trucks.
If enforced correctly and with strict punishment for drivers who breach it, this law ought to result in fewer accidents due to speeding and negligence.
In conjunction with this, all transport companies should be required to give their drivers training and to update their road-safety awareness skills.
Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
To read it in original please visit The National online
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