[TusharK]

The government is looking to set maximum speed limits for different types of roads based on the lane configuration instead of having separate speed limits for passenger cars and cabs.



At present, the speed limit for private cars on expressways and national highways is 120 km/h and 100 km/h, respectively. However, cabs are electronically limited to 80 km/h. The issue recently came up during discussions held by a committee set up for the 'Review of Speed Limit' of vehicles by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways.

The Bus and Car Operators Confederation of India (BOCI), in a letter to the ministry, has termed the policy as "highly discriminatory".

"This is highly discriminatory and doesn't serve the purpose. Speed limits should be defined by safety features provided in vehicles rather than applying different speed limits to the same model on vehicles based on its category as transport and non-transport," BOCI said.

A Supreme Court Committee on Road Safety had directed all states to install Speed Limiting Devices (SLDs) on transport vehicles, including cabs, in April 2017.

Source:ET Auto

Link to Team-BHP News

[Aditya]

Thank God!

So many cabs hold up the overtaking lane on the expressway just because of this silly speed limit. This forces faster vehicles to overtake from the left. It's extremely unsafe for the cabs as well as other road users. I've also maintained that driving on a straight, wide, open road such as the expressway at ~80 km/h causes drowsiness that can result in accidents.

Some other orders need to be reviewed as well.

[jalsa777]

Finally a dim-witted rule is being reviewed. I believe this was originally a typical knee-jerk reaction from the ministry which was facing backlash for the number of road fatalities in India. A scientific approach to such decisions is required and a periodic review must be done. Speed limits currently are less for safety and more for fine collection. Now that we're at it, can we also have a provision for minimum safe speed to be included in the law.

[GrammarNazi]

I still remember how weird it was whenever I rented a car and its speed was limited to 80kmph. It was a task to overtake anyone on the highway. Only positive it had IMO was that the driving by itself didn't cause much fatigue apart from overtaking.

IMO govt should actually mandate approx braking distances at certain specified speeds.

[Shreyans_Jain]

It was a stupid, hare brained rule, made by people who seem to have never driven on Indian roads themselves. It needed to go, and the brilliant minds who came up with it should be fired.

[Reinhard]

Ah. Finally a hope that we'll get a chance to rejoice at the removal of a stupid rule, that didn't exist to begin with, by the same brilliant people who implemented it just a while earlier .

Will be a good pass-time to try and find if any of the linked government officers/ministry people had close/distant relation with any company manufacturing the governor devices, Especially companies that made lot of profits since 2017 .

[turbospooler]

As far as I would welcome speed limit for cabs to be revised to match other private vehicles, I would still insist on them being fitted with speed governors.
I won't feel particularly safe when I know a bus doesn't have a speed governor limited to a reasonable speed (say 80-90 kmph). The Accidents in India thread is filled with maniacal driving of bus operators, both state owned and private. Removing speed governors would be disastrous.
Coming to cabs, we see lot of influx of drivers who don't follow basic rules (I know, even private vehicle owners are no saints), and the rash driving will increase multi-fold if the governors are done away with.

[pranavt]

So this means they won't be hogging the overtaking lane while doing 60 kph? And they could possibly speed up to 62 kph?

As someone who has to drive 70-80km every day on the Mumbai - Ahmedabad highway, these donkeys are just 0.1% less frustrating than the trucks that hog every lane while trying to overtake each other with a speed differential of 1-2 kph between them. So their overtakes take about 3 days to complete. There's a good chance that these guys purposely slow down right as soon as they're about to complete the overtake.

However, the trucks, at least occassionally, use their mirrors. The yellow numberplate people will hog the overtaking lane come what may, except when they want to overtake a truck.

Apologies for the rambling. These perpetual-60kph-cabs need to be banned from using anything but the left-most lane of a highway.

[swap002]

Considering how these cabs usually drive, both inside the city and outside, I for one don't want to see them going on high speeds. That is not to say all private car owners follow all rules, many do.
The yellow plate cabs, which are mostly seen in corporate office fleets for their employees, give zero .... to lane discipline, signals and speed limits. They are always in hurry or would be hogging the overtaking lane at 50kph and not giving way to vehicles behind them. This forces others to overtake from the left.
If government really wants to do something about road safety, then it has to start more awareness programs, TVCs etc. . There should be active patroling as in the developed countries to keep such drivers in check.

[Axe77]

This rule also defied all common sense. Vehicles by size and type have speed limits. To have a 100 kmph speed limit for a private plate Swift Dzire and an 80 kmph limit for the same car with a yellow plate is beyond logic.

Of course someone needs to educate these cabbies about lane rules as well. Almost all of them park themselves in the right most lane and stick there regardless of their speed. Makes highway traffic movement efficiency a joke!

[S A N Z]

It is important to consider the potential benefits and drawbacks of such a decision. While increasing the speed limit could lead to faster transportation and improved efficiency, it could also increase the risk of accidents and harm to human life and property.

Therefore, it is crucial for the government to conduct a thorough analysis of the impact that the change in speed limit would have on road safety, traffic density, and the environment. The government should also ensure that appropriate road infrastructure and safety measures are in place to minimize the risk of accidents and promote safe driving practices.

As a responsible citizen and driver, it is important to prioritize safety over speed and follow all traffic rules and regulations. Remember that the safety of yourself and others on the road should always be the top priority.

[Tucker48]

Please also remove 80kmph speed warning sound alert.

Is this sound alert is actually to alert or irritate the driver. We don't need a sound alert to tell us at what speeds we are driving.

Also speedometer speed is inconsistent and generally lower by approx 4-7kmph depending upon tyre size etc, so why not uniform speed indicators using GPS or some other (if)available tech. If someone is driving at speed limit according to speedometer, then I guess that too counts for lane hogging.

[Stribog]

Originally Posted by jalsa777

Finally a dim-witted rule is being reviewed. I believe this was originally a typical knee-jerk reaction from the ministry which was facing backlash for the number of road fatalities in India. A scientific approach to such decisions is required and a periodic review must be done. Speed limits currently are less for safety and more for fine collection. Now that we're at it, can we also have a provision for minimum safe speed to be included in the law.

This is just absolutely untrue. Maybe please do some background reading on a subject or refrain from passing such sweeping judgements?

This was triggered by two factors, both driven by judicial judgements.

In a Madras HC case (V Kannan vs Union of India) the petitioners asked for SLD (speed governors) and the GoI argued against it but the HC passed a ruling the this was mandatory. This was then appealed and the SC upheld the verdict.

A SC committee on road safety (still active) also suggested this.

Originally Posted by Reinhard

Ah. Finally a hope that we'll get a chance to rejoice at the removal of a stupid rule, that didn't exist to begin with, by the same brilliant people who implemented it just a while earlier .

Will be a good pass-time to try and find if any of the linked government officers/ministry people had close/distant relation with any company manufacturing the governor devices, Especially companies that made lot of profits since 2017 .

I really fail to see this instant scepticism and "Govt bad" comments. Fyi this ruling was a Madras HC ruling which the GoI OPPOSED, then appealed in the SC and the SC milords upheld the lower courts ruling thus making it a law.

If the GoI now needs to get rid of SLD's on yellow plates, it now needs to pass a law that allows it to do so in the legislative.

But right maybe we should see if some milord has family that makes these devices, that's logical though.

Edit - funnily enough the fact that this was on a sc ruling is mentioned right here in the summary of the link posted in the OP. Do people simply close their eyes to anything but the headline which usually are clickbait and then jump straight into the comments?

[DicKy]

Originally Posted by Stribog

This was triggered by two factors, both driven by judicial judgements....and the GoI argued against it but the HC passed a ruling the this was mandatory. This was then appealed and the SC upheld the verdict...A SC committee on road safety (still active) also suggested this.

Next to go should be the blanket sunfilm rule by the milords.

Something should be done to curtail these unnacountable judicial over reach.

[techieaditya]

This decision will have benefits as well as drawbacks! Government should definitely consider all the factors before taking any irrational decisions, just like they did earlier.

In a way, the speed limit of 80 kmph for taxis was a good thing, it helped in curbing rash driving by the cabbies and bus drivers. Now, when the gvernment plans on removing such electronic speed limits, it will again increase the menace caused due to rash driving.

While their decision to decide speed limits according to lanes is a welcome move but we all know the reality of lane discipline in India and I doubt if people will actually abide by such rules.