u2018 Police must gear up for long- term effortu2019 Activist Sumaira Abdulali welcomes step towards enforcement, says drive should continue like those against drunk driving and helmet- less riding have Continued from page 01 AFTER several test drives at major junctions over November and December last year, Mumbai police released a video for the latest campaign, # HonkResponsibly, on its official Twitter handle last week.
The campaign is based on the simple principle of u2018 the more you honk, the longer you waitu2019. At present, Mumbai police have identified 10 noisy junctions in the city u2014 Crawford Market, BMC head office, JJ hospital, Worli Naka, Dadar TT, Marine Drive, Haji Ali, Bandra court, Juhu circle and Andheriu2019s Bisleri junction.
u201c The needless honking causes noise pollution. Our priority is to install decibel meters at junctions near hospitals and educational institutions in the city. We have identified a few junctions suffering from reckless honking. A survey is also being conducted to identify more such junctions,u201d said an IPS officer.
Joint Commissioner of Police ( traffic) Madhukar Pandey said, u201c The decibel meters will be installed at major traffic signals within a week.u201d Deputy Commissioner of Police ( operations) Pranay Ashok told mid- day that it is the first time in the world that decibel meters are being connected to traffic signals to discourage needless honking.
u201c It is a unique model which no country has adopted before. I am sure this initiative will be widely adopted by cities and countries.u201d The campaign is a brainchild of Commissioner of Police ( CP) Sanjay Barve and Pandey.
A senior police officer told mid- day that reckless honking has been inconveniencing motorists at the traffic signals. u201c If the traffic signal is red, everyone waits for it to turn green.
But the moment it turns green, motorists/ motorcyclists trailing behind start honking needlessly. This often causes verbal fights on the road that led to traffic congestion. Now, if the reading in the decibel meter exceeds 85 dB, traffic signalu2019s timer will reset automatically.
So, keep honking if you want, but only if you also want to wait longer at the signal,u201d said another officer.
u201c After conducting trials in November and December, we uploaded a video on Twitter to see Mumbaikarsu2019 response.
The video was widely circulated and we have received an amazing response from Mumbaikars and even from the international public. Once all locations are identified, the decibel meters will be connected to the signalling system,u201d said Ashok.
A senior police officer told mid- day that the first such device will be installed at the Crawford Market junction near the office of the Commissioner of Police.
Another IPS officer said that noise levels go up especially during festivals. u201c We generally receive more complaints during festivals. Our officers visit locations after complaints are made to the control room or on Twitter and action is taken against violators. Yet we are pulled up by the high court as there are many anti- noise activists who approach the court,u201d the officer said.
Activist speak Anti- noise activist Sumaira Abdulali commended # Honk- Responsibly and Mumbai policeu2019s video.
u201c A decibel meter was a long- standing demand. For the first time I can see the traffic police talking about enforcement.
I think people will understand now why honking is bad. But ultimately, policeu2019s role is to ensure enforcement.
They will have to maintain their campaign just the way they have successfully discouraged drunk driving, driving without seat belt and helmet- less riding.u201d Abdulali also said threw light on tackling illegal horns, which are too loud. u201c Also, it is easy to apprehend those who honk continuously at a traffic signal. Hence, police should devise a mechanism to identify such people. They can do a panchnama of the spot to book the offender,u201d she added.
Juhu circle is one of the junctions which will get Mumbai policeu2019s Punishing Signal. PIC/ SAMEER MARKANDE CSMT junction will also get the Punishing Signal. PIC/ SURESH KARKERA u2018 The decibel meters will be installed at major traffic signals within a weeku2019 Madhukar Pandey, joint commissioner of police ( traffic) u2018 A decibel meter was a long- standing demand. For the first time, I see the traffic police talking about enforcement. I think people will understand why honking is badu2019 Sumaira Abdulali, activist Screen grabs of Mumbai policeu2019s video for The Punishing Signal 10 No. of noisy junctions identified by the Mumbai police
