The National Highway 4-A at Keri-Khandepar has turned into a death trap for motorists travelling along the route.
Commuting along this route has proved to be a nightmare for motorists as they have to negotiate the sharp turns and to add to their woes, the stretch lacks proper alignment, which has made it an accident-prone zone, resulting in many fatal accidents.
A resident Pradeep Naik says, “20 people have lost their lives in past few years on the road, which needs proper alignment to reduce the number of accidents.”
He said, “On January 5, this year, a student who was pillion riding on a two-wheeler, was crushed under the wheels of a tanker when the rider tried to negotiate a sharp turn. “Accident-prone zone” signboards need to be installed on the road and more such roads exist in Keri-Khandepar wherein many innocent lives are lost due to negligence on the part of the concerned authorities. To add to this, trucks parked along roadside at Curti, Amigos obstruct the view of the motorists which in turn has resulted in several accidents at the site.”
Another local Rocky Dias says, “The increasing number of accidents on this road is a cause for concern. Last year, there was fatal accident wherein a student was killed when the bus driver tried to avoid head-on collision with a truck and lost control of the vehicle and rammed the same into a hill.”
“Over 100 fatal accidents have been reported in the last three years in Ponda taluka and the government needs to take serious steps to ensure safety of motorists,” said Umakant Naik, a Khandepar resident.
Madan Naik, a Curti resident says, “The narrow roads, which have be neglected for many years now, need to be widened as many accidents have taken place. However, at Bethora, dividers have been constructed on the road along the NH.”
Like Keri-Khandepar, the Davlim Bypass too has witnessed fatal accidents due to uneven road conditions and sharp turns. Further, Zuari Bridge traffic, which is diverted via Borim Bridge, has increased the number of vehicles on Ponda’s roads resulting in more accidents.
Another local Viraj Sapre says, “There should be signboards at accident prone zones at Keri to avoid fatal accidents.”
According to Mahesh Naik, “The roads should be widened and dividers need to be constructed to prevent the vehicles from having head-on collisions which in turn will help reduce the number of accidents.
When contacted, PWD Executive Engineer, National Highway Division, Vijay Mardolkar said, “National Highway widening work is in progress along this stretch. The works include construction of Khandepar Bridge and widening of seven-kilometre road from Keri to Khandepar. The sharp turns would be cleared as soon as widening work is completed.”
He said, “The bridge work and road widening will be completed by 2018. At present, the speed limit on this National Highway is around 50 km per hour, but many drivers have been not maintaining the speed limit of their vehicles, which has resulted in many fatal accidents. Each one should drive safely to avoid accidents.”
