Ludhiana: Buses continue to halt illegally on Jalandhar bypass flyover

Nikhil Bhardwaj

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, October 31

A major tragedy had averted on Tuesday night as a speeding truck rammed into a stationary bus on the Jalandhar bypass flyover. Fortunately, no loss of lives reported in the accident but the collision was so intense that both vehicles had entangled into each other badly.

The bus had around 15 passengers and they suffered only minor injuries. Even drivers of both vehicles were safe.

The illegal stoppage of buses on the national highway has been posing risks to commuters’ lives and despite the presence of traffic police personnel at the Jalandhar bypass, such vehicles were never stopped and challaned by them.

The buses, mainly coming from the Jalandhar side, stop on the flyover illegally as they drop and pick passengers. Another reason of resorting to the illegal halt is it cut shorts the distance to the bus stand terminal. If the buses will not pass through the flyover, these have to cover more distance.

As per information, when a private bus, ‘Gagandeep’ coming from Jalandhar, stopped on the flyover for picking and dropping passengers, a speeding truck which was also coming from Jalandhar rammed into the rear of the stationary bus. Bus passengers felt a huge jerk and fell off from their places due to the intense collision.

Driver of the truck Vijay said: “The bus was standing almost in the middle of the highway, since I was driving on the highway at a good speed, I failed to make out whether the bus was staitonary or moving. Before he could apply brakes, his vehicle rammed into it.”

The bus driver when asked why he stopped the vehicle on the highway putting lives of the passengers at risk, he said his bus was not the only such vehicle that stops at the point daily, in fact, many buses have made this halt, though illegal, as their permanent stop for dropping and picking passengers.

After the accident, passers-by gathered at the spot. They blamed bus drivers for deliberately putting the lives of passengers at risk. People said the traffic police should not allow the the buses to stop at such illegal points. A resident said who would take responsibility if somebody dies in such mishaps.

Haphazard parking costs life

A haphazard parking of a loaded tractor-trailer on the Hambran road near Kutbewal village had also cost the life of a motorcyclist on Tuesday.

The motorcycle had rammed into the stationary tractor-trailer, which killed the biker on the spot. The deceased, Dharminder Singh, is a resident of Garha village. His brother Bhupinder Singh told the police that on Tuesday night his brother was going to his house. When he reached Kutbewal, he failed to notice a stationary tractor-trailer and rammed into it. It was parked in the middle of the road. Its parking lights were also not kept on. The police had registered a case against the driver of the vehicle, Lakhwinder, on the charges of culpable homicide.

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