17 June,2009 09:15 AM IST | | Subroto Roy
Cash-strapped citizens prefer using public transport to private vehicles, reducing the number of accidents on the Pune-Mumbai Expressway
While the ongoing economic slowdown has been a grisly experience for several unfortunate professionals, it has actually saved several lives on the Pune-Mumbai Expressway.
According to V D Sardeshmukh, executive engineer of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), the number of accidents happening on the Expressway has come down drastically following the economic slowdown.
"In a bid to cut down costs, most of the professionals who use Expressway now prefer using public transport over private vehicles. Hence, the vehicular traffic on the Pune-Mumbai Expressway has come down to 18,000 a day as compared has 20,000 vehicles earlier."
He added that this has contributed circuitously in reducing the number of accidents happening on the E-way.
Likewise, Latif Sayed, the in-charge of Pune-Mumbai E-way, also confirmed that the number of accidents happening on the Expressway has come down.