Fine collection for violating Bangalore traffic guidelines are turning automated. This has reduced violations such as red light jumping and helmet-less driving.
By Rhythm Sharma
The traffic police have booked 96 lakh people online and collected Rs 180 crores in 2022.The percentage of online fine collection has gone up from 38 percent in 2018 to 92 percent in 2022.
Arjun Singh, a student in Bengaluru who had jumped a red light as he did not see apolice official said “I jumped the red light as I was getting late for college. In the evening I received a message saying an E-challan has been generated against me.”
He added that the E-Challan had details such as timing and area of his offence.
The traffic police of Bengaluru said “Red light jumping cases have come down by 92 percent within a month as E-challans directly go on their mobile phones now.” The officer further said that it has also made the work of the traffic personnel easier as they do not have to detect the violators manually given the city’s traffic. The man power required on the ground has reduced.
M.A. Saleem, the Additional Director General of Police, said, “It helps in bringing more discipline because if a person violates rules at different spots, different challans are generated.” He also mentioned the offenders can be easily booked now, so it will help in reducing the rate of violations.
The traffic police further mentioned that helmet-less driving has also reduced as people are being cautious now. Experts said that automated violation collections helps in building deterrence as people will be more aware now.
Sivasubramaniam Jayaram, who is the national lead at Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) said, “Going completely contactless can be only achieved if enforcement of online detection systems is followed everywhere in the city.”
The experts say that by going online entirely, it will further reduce the problems of manual detection and booking offenders.
