the goan I network
VASCO
Roads in the port town have now turned into late night racing tracks for vehicles carrying cargo especially loaded tankers.
A group of people including the convenor of NGO Goa First had a lucky escape on Saturday night when two tankers were found speeding along the FL Gomes road.
While many have witnessed the speeding cargo vehicles moving out of MPT, the port town has been a victim of many fatal accidents lately.
Though the citizens have demanded that the traffic police authorities and transport department take cognizance of the speeding vehicles and initiate stringent action, nothing much has been done in this regards so far. According to sources, racing among trucks carrying cargo is a regular affair and many heavy vehicles indulge in racing competitions. “Many times, a bet is placed by drivers at the cargo loading point of the port and the driver of the first vehicle to reach the Chicalim junction is then given dinner and drinks at some ‘dhaba’ along the highway by the loser,” informed a source.
“These trucks then begin the race from IOC junction to Chicalim circle and many times, they are seen speeding parallel to each other on unoccupied roads of Vasco at late night,” said the source.
According to eyewitness Parshuram Sonurlekar, Convenor of NGO Goa First, two tankers were speeding on the road on Saturday night and one truck missed falling on its side over a speed breaker near the Nike showroom while the other tanker carrying ammonia had to brake abruptly at the sharp turn near St Andrews as they missed colliding against each other at high speed. “The trucks missed the people eating ‘Ros omlette’ at a stall near the turn and we ran for our lives on seeing the speeding trucks. The tankers also missed hitting the stall. I have recorded the entire incident and will file a complaint against the tankers with MPT, Traffic Police and Dy Collector,” said Sonurlekar.
“The tankers were speeding very close to each other and could have easily collided with each other had any one of them erred on road judgements. I was shocked at their speed on city roads and they missed hitting me by a whisker at about 11.30 pm,” added another eyewitness Yaduveer Sawant who had stopped to eat something before proceeding to his home in Mapusa.
“This is dangerous and police should keep a strict check on such incidents. The MPT should conduct a strict investigation in this matter and action has to be taken on erring drivers that could easily cause road mishaps,” said Sawant.
