A day after a 30-year-old woman returning from a wedding was run over by a truck in New Town, cops have planned a fresh awareness drive for bikers to remind them about blind spots of drivers in large vehicles, and the dos and don’ts of road safety.
On Saturday night, Behala resident Sanchita Chakraborty was riding pillion on a bike on her way back from a wedding. “The signal had just turned green and the biker was attempting to move ahead of the truck. But the bike bumped into the truck and the biker lost control, resulting in the woman losing balance and falling. The truck’s rear wheel ran over her,” said an officer.
Cops have now planned a drive to teach bikers how to identify and avoid blind spots of the drivers of large vehicles. The police are also asking two-wheeler riders not to overtake vehicles recklessly.
“Blind spots are the areas a driver can’t see when looking in their mirrors or by turning their head. Though these spots can be reduced by proper mirror placement and use of cameras, they are very difficult to eliminate. The sheer size of the buses’ blind-spot zones makes it extremely difficult to constantly have a 360° view. This makes it necessary for pedestrians, cyclists and bikers to be aware of the three distinct blind spots of a bus driver — the two sides close to the driver’s cabin, the rear, and the front portion near the tyres. We will run a full-fledged campaign on the same from this week,” said the officer.
On Sunday, TOI found cops near Biswa Bangla gate repainting the STOP lines and other traffic instructions, demarcating a portion with guard rails for pedestrian crossover and putting up fresh road-safety banners.
“We should never forget the road-safety rules, no matter the emergency. A little mistake can cost a life as we have seen in the case of this woman on Saturday,” said an officer.
