After reflecting on road safety, RTO ties up with bikers to run campaign

Bikers will cover more than 2,500 km across the state, visit toll plazas and truck junctions, install reflectors on slow-moving vehicles, and spread awareness about the importance of lane discipline as per highway norms

Resolute to make travel on highways safer, a group of youths from the city is going on a bike expedition at the end of this month. Over 100 members of Pune Bikers Group have taken the initiative to install reflectors on slow-moving conveyances like bullock carts and tractor trolleys.

Road trip: The campaign is being run under the ‘Street Sense’ programme

The campaign is being run under the ‘Street Sense’ programme in collaboration with Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO). During their 10-day trip, the bikers will cover more than 2,500 km across the state, visit toll plazas and truck junctions, install the reflectors, and spread awareness about the importance of lane discipline as per highway norms.

Sangram Devkar, a member of the group told MiD DAY, “We have tied up with various biker troops from across the state, including from Solapur, Kolhapur, Sangali, coastal highways in Konkan, Mumbai, and Pune, so that we can spread the message to the maximum number of people, and they will also help us put up reflectors on the vehicles,” He added, “We have identified truck junctions, where we will be putting black stickers on the headlamps. We will also hold seminars regarding safety measures and importance of lane discipline.”

For the past two months, affiliates of the group were studying about the issues on the highways, reasons behind accidents, and various other problems faced by commuters. The budget for this expedition is around Rs 1 lakh, and the participants are trying to tie up with some automobile company as sponsor.

“We will be driving heavy and attractive bikes, above 400 cc, so people are drawn towards us. We want to reach the maximum number of people possible, and let them know about our campaign, and also get them involved in it. In every city we visit, local biker groups would be helping us to conduct programmes,” said Devkar.

Rs 1 lakh
Expected expenditure on the trip

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