In a bid to cut down road accidents in the city, Tactical Urbanism (TU) trial has been launched at the iconic Signature Bridge by the SaveLIFE Foundation (SLF) along with various local agencies in the national Capital.
The trial will end by November 6. Once the interventions are proven, they will be made permanent at the bridge which has reported 53 road crashes and 17 fatalities in the past three years since 2018.
TU trials test out urban design, transportation planning and infrastructural changes for improving road safety for all road users, especially the most vulnerable, like pedestrians, cyclists and other non-motorised transport users, said CEO of SLF, Piyush Tewari.
He explained that as part of its Zero Fatality Corridor (ZFC) initiative, the foundation tests temporary urban design interventions to improve safety of pedestrians, cyclists and other road users.
An essential component of these trials is road space redistribution to ensure modal equity, road geometrics modification, traffic channelisation, vehicular speed reduction, and the addition of pedestrian and cyclist safety infrastructure.
“The TU trial undertaken at the Signature Bridge includes the introduction of nine sets of Transverse Bar Markings (TBM) along the main carriageway of the bridge as a speed calming measure. Made of thermoplastic markings, TBMs force motorists to reduce speed through a rumbling effect felt while they drive over them. Each set of TBMs comprise six bars that are 150 mm wide, 300 mm apart, and 5 to 7.5 mm high,” Tewari added.
“In addition to the TBMs to reduce the speeds at the Approach/or Interchange Ends of the Signature Bridge, the TU trials also include the narrowing of merging and diverging angles and approach lanes, for the reduction of conflict points at the site. This month-long trial will end on November 6,” he said.
Jasmine Shah, Vice Chairperson of the Dialogue and Development Commission (DDC) of Delhi, said, “Road safety is a critical public safety issue and the Delhi Government is committed to continuously finding unique, innovative solutions for the same. The ‘Tactical Urbanism’ trials have been envisaged by DDC under its Delhi@2047 initiative, which leverages deep, sustained collaborations between government, civil society and private sector to realize Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's vision of making Delhi the no. 1 city in the world by 2047.
“The trials so far have proven that such low-cost solutions can have a significant impact by reducing the number of road crash fatalities on target sites and stretches to zero." Chandra Kumar Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Traffic (North and Central District), pinned hope on the trial as he said, “Ever since its inauguration, the Signature Bridge has experienced a high level of over speeding, especially of goods/ commercial vehicles and two-wheelers.
The speed limit in this section is 40 km/hr for HCVs and 60 km/hr for cars. This unsafe road practice is being witnessed round the clock, leading to multiple road crashes as per our data.”
“The reduction of speed through the additional speed calming measures put in place during this trial will help reduce over-speeding and make the stretch safer for all road users visiting the Bridge,” said the police official.
