Horns So Loud You’ll Freak! Cops Crack Down on 68 Buses & Penalize Drivers Using Shrill Horns
Mangaluru: Almost everyone who has lived in Mangaluru or other big cities would know what happens when the traffic signal shows 10 seconds to the green on the timer. There’s no amount of logic which can explain the honking that begins then as if expecting the vehicles in front to magically vanish or somehow clear out faster. Horn not OK please: Honking without reason is illegal, so we might as well stop it. Honking unnecessarily on the roads is common but don’t let that make you believe you can get away with it.
And for that matter, if you honk shrill horns the cops will get you- and thanks to energetic Top Cop Police Commissioner Dr P S Harsha who directed the cops to crack down on bus drivers using shrill horns, following complaints from citizens during last Friday’s Phone- In programme about buses using loud horns, especially near hospitals, education institutions etc. Police from East, West, North and South Stations cracked down on 68 buses, and fined the drivers using shrill horns, and also removed the shrill horns.
Citizens are fed up with monster buses terrorizing vehicle owners with their shrill air horns on city roads. These buses that ply in and around the City not only weave their way by driving rashly but also scare other road users with their shrill horns which are not permitted within the city by law. They use it to bully their way on all routes leading in and out of the city. These ear-splitting horns which were for a while being ignored by traffic police, but on Tuesday, 20 August 2019 the police got into action and booked cases on drivers under MV Act Section 190 Clause (2) and also fined them for this offense.
Though shrill horns are not permitted to be used inside the city limits, many times the traffic police seem to be turning a deaf ear to them. Most bus drivers claim these horns are meant for highways but use them within the city too which is the only way to keep the bus moving. The high decibel annoying sounds of vehicle horns are adding to woes of a bustling city whose vehicle population is adding to the already unbearable air and noise pollution. Citizens should raise their voices and passengers traveling in such buses should also raise their voices against Shrill horns which are creating a nuisance to other vehicle drivers on the road, and also to the pedestrians and public.
But one thing for sure, the City and service bus drivers in Mangaluru don’t learn by their mistakes- they keep on continuing the same mistakes of breaking the traffic laws, and keep on paying the fines. The scenario is the same across the city, with little regard for even hospitals or schools that could be in the vicinity. But don’t let the frequency of this behaviour make you believe that it’s legal to do so, or that people cannot be held accountable for it.
The Indian Motor Vehicles Act on using shrill horns says that a driver of a vehicle shall not “sound the horn needlessly or continuously or more than necessary to ensure safety”. It also prohibits blowing the horn in silence zones, fitting or using “multi-toned horn giving harsh, shrill or alarming noise”. Even vehicles creating undue noise while running or driving vehicles with “a muffler causing alarming sound”, are not allowed. One thing about our local bus drivers is that they sill have no shame, even after they have been fined by the traffic cops for using loud horns many times earlier, they still repeat the same offense.
The increasing number of traffic violations has sent the cops on overdrive as they penalized these drivers during rush hours for honking and using loud horns-thereby raking in big bucks in fines. The traffic cops also slapped fines on conductors for not wearing uniforms, and also drivers for not stopping at the designated bus stops. The cops didn’t heed to any excuses put forth to them by the bus drivers or conductors, instead coolly punched in the license plate numbers on their Blackberry’s and issued them the fine violation ticket popped out from the hand device.
ACP (Traffic) Manjunath Shetty speaking said, “Lately we have received complaints from the educational institutions, hospitals, religious places and citizens about loud honking by the bus drivers. Normally drivers don’t honk at intersections, especially when they see a traffic cop. As a result, we are forced to do surprise checks and stop vehicles, take them to the side of the road, test their horns and then take action. It is a laborious and time-consuming task and so is the new initiative we have launched against these shrill horns used by these buses. We will continue our drive until the bus owners/drivers remove these loud horns.”
Harsh and (sometimes) impractical it may be, but the only way out is to ban horns completely in busy urban areas. The sort of proposed policing is practically impossible. Who decides acceptable tones, loudness levels etc., and how to ensure our ingenious population doesn’t come up with workarounds? When a hundred people are honking away in maddening traffic, it doesn’t serve any purpose anyway as nobody can make out who’s honking at whom. If someone won’t move when he sees you in his SUV, fat chance he will when you honk at him. In today’s crackdown on loud horns, the cops did remove loud horns- some horns were fitted in a secret place, but the cops were able to trace them. Each bus found to be using horns with a frequency above 75 decibels were fined. The police inspected the frequency of the horn sounds using a sound level meter.
While complimenting the traffic cops for a job well done, and urging them to do similar checks every other day, only then we can bring the noise pollution of this shrill down. Already each one is under terrible stress driving and riding and walking in Mangaluru roads. We hear frequent shrill or musical horns mostly from these private buses, and they also use it in silent zones and even midnight. Hearing those horns many have experienced severe heartbeats due to sudden high decibel noise exposure. This already creates a serious mental and physical disturbance on the human population. So shrill horns should be totally banned and severe fines and punishment to be given to drivers who use them. Mangaluru Traffic Police awake ….arise! Bring peace to Mangalureans. Thanks, Police commissioner Dr P S Harsha, DCP Manjunath Shetty and your team- a job well done!
Excellent article Alfie…this is actually the need of the hour.I have been always been after these bus guys in one way or the other especially when I see them overtaking with speed from the left side and the deafening honking to go along with it which literally scares people enough to lose balance on their two wheelers and unnerving four wheeler drivers.
I have gone so many times and the traffic ACP has always been so proactive enough to take action and at many times have suspended their license. But it goes back to the same shameless and insensitive behavior.
Really hope that many more of us bring this to the attention of the traffic police especially when they are really taking action and get these bus operators to stick to the rules. Otherwise all this hard work will be in vain.
Thank you Alfie for bringing this to the attention of the readers so that many of us can support the police in whatever way possible.