A few weeks ago, I was riding my motorcycle on MG Road, Kochi. Since it was a Sunday, there was little traffic, and much calm. All of a sudden, there is a loud noise from right behind me.
No, it's not an ambulance snaking its way through. It' a police escort jeep blaring full volume at the vehicles in front. I took to the left side, and in a matter of seconds, the jeep and the State Govt. luxury vehicle behind it zoomed past me. The honking continued non-stop. All this at a road where it is expressly written "Speed limit 35 kmph".
This single incident stands testimony why the Govt. is apathetic to the traffic woes of a growing city. Their vehicles are not affected at all. Any vehicle driver who doesn't give way is forced to the limits of annoyance by constant honking. Since the vehicle is closed, the VIP is saved from hearing the noise caused. If a lane is too crowded, the opposite lane is evacuated so that the VIP can pass through easily. The same with bottleneck areas too. One cannot be blamed for thinking that roads are the ancestral property of VIPs.
Aren't VIPs subject to traffic rules? Don't they have speed limits and decibel limits? Is it fair on their part to startle and scare away fellow road-users in the name of "hurry"?
No, it's not an ambulance snaking its way through. It' a police escort jeep blaring full volume at the vehicles in front. I took to the left side, and in a matter of seconds, the jeep and the State Govt. luxury vehicle behind it zoomed past me. The honking continued non-stop. All this at a road where it is expressly written "Speed limit 35 kmph".
This single incident stands testimony why the Govt. is apathetic to the traffic woes of a growing city. Their vehicles are not affected at all. Any vehicle driver who doesn't give way is forced to the limits of annoyance by constant honking. Since the vehicle is closed, the VIP is saved from hearing the noise caused. If a lane is too crowded, the opposite lane is evacuated so that the VIP can pass through easily. The same with bottleneck areas too. One cannot be blamed for thinking that roads are the ancestral property of VIPs.
Aren't VIPs subject to traffic rules? Don't they have speed limits and decibel limits? Is it fair on their part to startle and scare away fellow road-users in the name of "hurry"?
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