Every year, traffic police register 16,000 to 18,000 cases against such riders

The traffic police seem to be fighting a losing battle when it comes to preventing two-wheeler riders from riding on pavements in the city. Every year, 16,000 to 18,000 cases are registered against such two-wheeler riders, and the numbers haven’t reduced over the last six years. The only way to curb the menace, said the police, was to have railings along pavements or installing bollards.

According to data available with the traffic police, as many as 2,735 cases were registered in January and February this year against such riders in the city. As many as 18,889 cases were registered in 2017 and up to 16,069 cases were booked the year before that.

At present, the fine for riding on the pavement is a mere ₹100. The police are planning to book offenders for dangerous driving too, which will add another ₹300 to their fine. They hope this will serve as a deterrent. In some cases, we are seizing licences and sending them to the RTOs for suspension, said a traffic police official.

Officials admitted that the number of cases registered is not indicative of the full extent of the menace. They said while traffic police are busy managing vehicular movement on the road during peak hours, they are unable to keep track of those riding on pavements.

It is impossible to have a constable every 100 metres to ensure that no vehicle enters the pavement, a traffic police official said.

Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) R. Hithendra told The Hindu, “Putting a constable everywhere and asking him to stop the vehicles is impractical. We cannot afford it either. Physical barriers are required to stop riders from entering the footpath.”

He added that on their part, the police would initiate more awareness campaigns in this regard.

‘Barricades work’

The Ulsoor traffic police have come up with a plan to curb such cases. Recently, the police, who were exasperated with an overwhelming number of complaints about such two-wheeler riders, decided to erect bollards on pavements. Each row has four or five bollards covering the pavement from one end to another, leaving just enough space for pedestrians to walk through. Several rows of bollards within a 50 metres distance have been erected on select stretches of pavements on M.G. Road and near Ulsoor metro station.

A senior traffic police official said this had worked efficiently in curbing two-wheeler riding on pavements.

“On 100 ft Road in Indiranagar, we have placed signage to create awareness among pedestrians to report those who ride on footpaths, and at the same time warn those who cannot seem to resist riding on footpaths,” the official said.

‘Increase penalty, install CCTV cameras’

A common excuse given by those who ride on pavements is that they are in a hurry to reach their destination. With bumper-to-bumper traffic on the roads, pavements seem to be an irresistible draw.

Only a stringent penalty will deter offenders, said Manju Thomas, who has been fighting for pedestrian rights. Recently, a video of her initiative, where she is seen requesting people not to ride on pavements, went viral and received accolades from hundreds of people. “The case of those riding on pavement is similar to drunk driving. As there are strict measures in place, people are making efforts to drink responsibly or take a cab after drinking. In the same way, we need stricter regulations to curb vehicles on pavements. That will discourage people from breaking the law,” said.

Erecting physical barriers by installing bollards may be expensive, said traffic expert M.N. Sreehari. He felt that the police could make it easier by installing CCTV cameras near pavements and sending notices to those found riding on the pavement. “Erecting bollards is one way to go about it. But to erect them everywhere would cost too much. Cameras are cost effective and will make it easy for the police to track violators. This could also be used for law and order surveillance,” he said.