AHMEDABAD: The city’s roads are set to become the first in Gujarat to have tyre killers — metal spikes that will shred tyres of vehicles going in the wrong direction. The move aims to curb wrong-side driving and prevent accidents and traffic jams. It comes after the high court suggested measures such as tyre killers to curb stop wrong-side driving.
Tyre killers are similar to speed bumps but have spikes on one side. They act as normal speed bumps for vehicles driving on the correct side but will rip holes into the tyres of those going in the wrong direction. They are designed to discourage wrong-side driving, which is rampant in Ahmedabad, especially at the exit points of underpasses. The first set of tyre killers was installed on a service road next to a flyover in the Chankyapuri area.
An AMC official said, “The suggestion to install tyre killers came from the high court. We are yet to identify more sites. “Certain areas such as Anandnagar, Satellite, Paldi, a major part of SG Road and Sindhu Bhavan Road (SBR) see vehicles driving on the wrong side. In the Zone 2 police jurisdiction, which covers most of the walled city. The roads are wide enough that even while driving on the wrong side people don’t slow down. U-turns at underpasses are sometimes quite a distance away and and people often resort to driving on the wrong side. This creates jams and causes danger to pedestrians and two-wheelers. Tyre killers could act as a deterrent.”
A section of officials in the AMC’s traffic department said commuters need to be educated about tyre killers before the installation, as they could pose a risk of injury to motorists, particularly two-wheeler users.
“Pune and Noida tried them, but there were safety concerns raised. Before installing tyre killers, commuters need to be informed of the danger they pose, particularly as two-wheelers are at a greater risk of injury,” an AMC official said.