Noida’s tyre killers hit road bump day after installation, temporarily removed

The city’s tyre killers, installed on Monday, were removed on Tuesday after heavy vehicular movement damaged it at several places.

The Noida authority kept the broken pieces on one side and was expected to repair it on Tuesday night. The tyre killers would be drilled into the road with stronger screws and a three-metre concrete slope will be made on both sides of the tyre killers to make the crossing gradual and more like a speed breaker.

Authority officials said this was done intentionally by miscreants, early Tuesday morning.

“We had stationed one person to watch the road through the day. We have been told that the tyre killers were pulled out when the official left the spot for half an hour in the morning. It will be fixed using bitumen by Tuesday night,” Rajeev Tyagi, general manager, Noida authority, said.

The vulnerability of the contraption has raised controversy among residents, who are debating its use with regard to vehicular safety. While the authority is working on improving the design and repairing it, some are now demanding that these be removed permanently. Other residents, however, hail it as a good move and want it installed in other areas too.

“Removing them and calling it a failure within a day is not a solution. Those who break the law will always protest a good move like this. But these are very important in a city like Noida where multiple penalties and enforcement does not seem to work,” Soumya Singh, a resident of Sector 77, said.

Another resident said that once the design is improved and repairs done, people need to give it some time to bear results. If successful in reducing driving on the wrong side, it should be installed at other places too, to act as a deterrent against traffic violations.

“Jumping to conclusions will not help get any results. Any change comes with challenges that should be systematically removed, so that the wrong-side driving problem is addressed,” Devendra Gupta, a resident of Sector 75, said.

Vendors at the intersection said there was no wrong-side driving Monday, usually a common practice on this stretch. People often take the wrong side rather than the U-turn that is about 700 metres ahead.

However, there are several apprehensions among people about the design of the tyre killer and whether it will be safe for regular commuters. Some residents said it was a shabby job done by the authority that led to them dismantling within a day. Others said that the design of the spikes may hurt the base of vehicles.

“The spikes are hitting the underbody of vehicles with lower ground clearance. This is improper design and will hurt even vehicles going in the right direction. Authorities should fine traffic offenders or suspend their driving license and not jeopardise the lives of commuters,” Bharat Yadav, a resident of Sector 121, said.

Other residents suggest fixing the tyre killers so that they are stronger and do not damage to vehicles.