The top speed is
capped at 70kmph for private cars driving on major roads like the
National Highway or expressways inside Delhi’s limit such as the NH-48, Meerut
e-way and the DND stretch that connects Delhi to Noida.
Other roads that include
the Ring Road and the Outer Ring Road will be a 60kmph zone except
for a few stretches which run in the vicinity of some residential colonies.
These include the roads in Model Town and North Campus. As for the main arterial
roads the speed limit is capped at 50kmph for all cars, jeeps and cabs.
Within residential
colonies, the top speed for private vehicles has been set at 30kmph.
This speed limit is applicable in market areas, service lanes and for roads
inside residential localities. The same limit applies to all
approach loops on flyovers.
NEW SPEED LIMIT FOR
TWO WHEELERS: For the first time Delhi has set a separate speed
limit for two wheelers. This will be cap of 60kmph for two wheelers on highways
where the speed limit is set at 70kmph for cars. As for the rest of the roads,
the two wheelers will adhere to the speed limits that are set for cars.
SPEED LIMIT FOR
PUBLIC TRANSPORT: Public transport vehicles such as auto rickshaws can
travel at a maximum speed of 40kmph.
WATCH OUR VIDEO EXPLAINING THE FUTILITY OF SPEED LIMITS: Time to
increase city speed limits? | PT's Frank Talk #9 | Motown India March 2019
NOW DO THESE SPEED
LIMITS MAKE SENSE IN THE REAL WORLD?
Frankly
speaking, in my opinion, this is absolute bunkum. We live in a world where
people drive and ride the most sophisticated cars and two wheelers. Let’s take
the two wheelers first. Their speed is set at a maximum of 60kmph. From commuter
bikes to sports bikes to the super sports bikes, each of these has the
capability to speed much beyond 100kmph at the twist of a throttle. Maybe some regular
as well as electric scooters may not go beyond a 50 or 75kmph speed, but the
rest move at the pace of lightening.
The
moment you exit Delhi and move on to different states, the highways too have a maximum
speed limit of in and around 100kmph. This too is impractical, as vehicles are actually
driven at speeds much beyond 140kmph.
Coming
back to motorcycles, some of the superbikes have power and torque than can put
a car to shame. Asking those riding them to adhere to a 60kmph limit will be an
exercise in futility.
As
for modern cars, many of them can reach speeds of 160kmph and above at the tap
of the accelerator. One wonders, why do manufacturers make them or if they make
them, should they not be restricted to the race track alone. The same goes for
cars with huge power that translates to great speeds. Are Indian law makers not
aware of the real life situation when it comes to cars and bikes? Or are they
desperate to make a lot of money through speed tickets and fines?
Car beep warnings and Apps to warn you of speed cameras
Since
the second half of 2019, it has become mandatory for vehicle manufacturers to
warn those driving cars with a beep sound. Thus, many would have realised that
the moment your car hits the 80kmph speed limit and crosses it, your car emits
a beep warning or a warning bell sound. This
is to make you aware that you have touch 80kmph and it is time to slow down.
But
if you still throw caution to the winds and continue stepping on the
accelerator and your car crosses the 120kmph mark, then the beep or bell warning
becomes kind of continuous. This is a serious kind of warning. But if you
ignore that warning you can still continue driving at alarming speeds. Though
these warning mechanisms have become mandatory for all car manufacturers to
install in their new cars, a lot of people get these disabled by experts who
love to tinker with electronics.
Talking
of warning, one can also download a host of apps on your smart phone that use
your live navigation chart to warn you of the speed cameras that lurk ahead on
the road. At that point one can slow down and then take off once you cross the
speed camera. In fact, slowing down one’s vehicle is what almost every automobile
driver resorts to in the country today when he or she approaches a speed camera.
You
can notice it for yourself that as cars approach a speed camera, almost
instantly everybody gets into the slow mode and reduces the speed of their vehicles
to less than 50kmph. The moment one crosses these speed cameras, they
accelerate and drive at speeds exceeding 80kmph, till the next traffic light or
the next speed camera or till the time you confront a jaywalker or cow on the
road or a bad pot hole, whichever comes first. It’s all about hoodwinking the
system, a trait that not only Delhi-ites, but drivers all over the country have
adopted! Speed thrills but kills too, is an old saying. Nobody really cares
about that in our world!