Crash barriers being put up on 43 flyovers in Karnal district
Parveen Arora
Tribune News Service
Karnal, February 4
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has started the process of installing metal beam crash barriers (MBCBs) on the central verge of all 43 flyovers situated between Panipat district limits and Ambala district limits.
The authorities claim the work on around 25 flyovers has been completed and the work on the remaining is underway. It is expected that the installation work will be completed by the end of March.
“The installation work of MBCBs is being done in compliance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. We have started the process of installing barriers on the central verge of all the flyovers on NH-44 to ensure safer road for commuters. Besides, we are also erecting around 5,000 signages and boards to display major landmarks and cities on NH-44,” said Bhanu Pratap Singh, Section Engineer, NHAI, Ambala.
He said that an overlay work of bitumen is also being done on the stretch of 116 km between Panipat and Ambala districts. A sum of Rs 15 crore would be incurred on these works including installing barricades, erecting signage and overlaying work of bitumen, he added.
MBCBs prevent vehicles from colliding with another vehicle after crossing the divider. These ensure minimum damage to the vehicles and occupants as these absorb maximum energy by flattening out and laterally, restrain the vehicle from veering over. Besides, these provide a good visual guide to drivers especially in the night. These barricades could be repaired quickly in case of accidents, he added.
Notably, several fatal accidents had taken place on National Highway-44 in the past in which a vehicle crossed the divider and hit another vehicle coming from the other side. “This step will reduce the number of such accidents,” said Singh.
Haryana had 9,431 accidents in 2020 in comparison to 10,944 in 2019. As many as 4,507 persons died in 2020, while in 2019, 5,057 persons died in accidents. In 2020, 7,659 persons received injuries in accidents in comparison to 9,362 in 2019.
Towards safer travel
- Metal beam crash barriers prevent vehicles from colliding with another vehicle after crossing the divider
- These ensure minimum damage to the vehicles and occupants
- These absorb the maximum energy by flattening out and restrain the vehicle from veering over
- These are a good visual guide to drivers especially in the night. These barricades can be repaired quickly in case of accidents
- The work is being done in compliance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
- Notably, several fatal accidents had taken place on National Highway-44 in the past
