Importance of a Scientific and Efficient Traffic Enforcement in India | IRTE

405 people are killed in crashes and a mind-blowing 6.2 billion traffic violations take place on Indian roads every day.  Poor and inadequate road infrastructure and inefficient and faulty traffic enforcement systems are significant contributors to these numbers.
The most significant role of traffic enforcement is reducing the number of severe and fatal accidents, the secondary being, ensuring a free flow of traffic.
To make that a reality, we need efficient, effective and scientific systems in place.
In developed countries, traffic enforcement agencies get the support of civic or road authorities to ensure a smooth flow of traffic while minimising the number of severe and fatal accidents.
However, in developing countries like India, the responsibility of traffic enforcement lies with the traffic police, a significant number of whom do not have adequate training. It makes their job tougher and leads to chaos on the roads.
Therefore, it is imperative to provide them with technical know-how and training to facilitate effective traffic management and enforcement.
IRTE (Institute of Road Traffic Education) is one such organisation that is committed to finding viable solutions to make the road environment safer. 

The institute has developed and benchmarked tools and systems for effective traffic enforcement, crash investigation and road safety management.
Here are the 3 significant contributions of IRTE in Enhancing Road Safety
  1. The Interceptor: Developed in 1995, Interceptor is an evidence-based traffic law enforcement device. It is designed to help the traffic police capture traffic violations, including speeding on video. A significant breakthrough, it has helped immensely in cutting down violations, wherever followed.
  2. The CrashLab: IRTE has set-up India’s first Mobile Collision Analysis & Research Laboratory – CrashLab. The lab is built for a scientific investigation of road crashes. It helps in understanding the cause and consequences of the collisions, and consequently, find solutions to minimise them.
  3. School of Traffic Enforcement: The latest venture of IRTE, it has been set-up to support and train traffic police organisations, police training schools, and other related organisations dealing with traffic management and enforcement. It prepares the officials to build their expertise. 

Such initiatives cannot be cracked alone and need a lot of support – both road users and road safety management authorities. It requires us all to collectively understand the importance of road safety education and take meaningful steps towards contributing to a safer road environment.

 AUTHOR : Rohina Chawla

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