Consumers beware!
You can demand safe transportation
Pushpa Girimaji

Pushpa Girimaji

Two horrific road accidents involving inter-state luxury buses in a span of 15 days have exposed the callous negligence of not just private transport operators, but also that of enforcement agencies. It has completely shaken consumer confidence in the safety of road transportation in the country.

Bus accidents are not rare in India, but the one witnessed on October 30, where a speeding Volvo bus hit a culvert and caught fire, trapping the passengers in the burning inferno, was so gruesome that it sent shock waves around the country.

Out of the 52 passengers in the bus, 45 were charred beyond recognition. Even as transport departments in different parts of the country suddenly woke up to flagrant violations of the law by private tour operators, another similar accident involving a Volvo on November 14 further stunned the nation, this time the bus was travelling from Bengaluru to Mumbai and even though 42 passengers managed to break open the emergency exits and escape, seven could not and were charred to death. Even out of those who escaped, 30 suffered burn injuries.

Firefighters dousing the flames that engulfed the luxury bus which caught fire at Mahboobnagar in Andhra Pradesh. The private bus was on its way from Bangalore to Hyderabad. PTI

Manufacturing defects

While experts are looking into the possibility of any manufacturing defect in the vehicle leading to the fire, preliminary investigations into the accidents by the police and the crackdown on private bus operators by the Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh road transport departments, have shown the extent of safety violations by bus operators.

For example, in the bus involved in the first accident, it was found that (a) the driver was overspeeding (b) there was no second driver as required for overnight journey (c) even the one who was driving had already done an overnight trip the previous night and was not supposed to drive that night (d) window curtains made it difficult for the passengers to distinguish the emergency exits and (e) worse, the hammers meant for breaking open the emergency exits were missing.

Similarly, in the bus involved in the second accident, it was found that (a) the bus was overspeeding (b) the operator had put an unauthorised seat next to the driver, thereby blocking the passage for passengers to escape from the front door during an emergency.

Commercial loads

But the checks on private operators have revealed more shocking facts: For example, the buses carried commercial load and one of them was even carrying fire crackers! While in Karnataka, 11,000 cases have been registered in Bengaluru alone (from October 31 to November 9) for safety violations in transport vehicles, in Andhra Pradesh, 195 vehicles have been seized.

And the offences include defects in emergency exits, route violations, permit violations, carrying excess commercial load (why should they be allowed to carry any commercial load at all?) and not having hammers meant for breaking the emergency exits.

However, from the past track records of transport departments in the country, one can be sure that this is only a temporary phase. That’s why consumers need to keep up the pressure on those who run these services and those who enforce the law, by asking questions on safety while purchasing tickets and at the start of the journey.

Emergency exits

The accidents also underscore the inadequacy of emergency exits in these buses and the need for an emergency door in addition to the existing exit windows. The Karnataka government has already asked all private operators to ensure this and given them three months time to comply. All other state governments should follow suit.

Similarly, the buses should have a smoke detector/alarm to wake up passengers in an emergency during a night journey. It is also important to have speed governors on all these buses and ensure that only fire-retardant materials are used for the interiors of the bus.

Here are a few questions that you need to ask the transporter:

(a) Does the bus have a certificate of fitness?

(b) Does the bus have a speed governor?

(c) Does it have valid fire extinguishers and hammers to break the glass of the emergency exit?

(d) If it is an overnight journey, is there a spare driver? (remember, in a large number of accidents involving overnight journeys, the cause is the driver dozing off). Do not hesitate to ask similar questions at the start of the journey too. Remember, it’s a question of your safety.

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