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MOTORINDIA
l
May 2012
105
Stern action necessary to check
growing overloading of vehicles
Road transport is vital for eco-
nomic development, trade and social
integration. Easy accessibility, flex-
ibility of operations, door-to-door
service and reliability have earned
road transport an increasingly higher
share of both passenger and freight
traffic vis-à-vis other transport
modes.
Roads carry 61 per cent of freight
traffic and 87 per cent of passenger
traffic. National Highways, which
are the major arteries of the road net-
work, carry 40 per cent of road traf-
fic. The unanticipated growth in vol-
ume of goods vehicles, coupled with
heavy loads is, however, responsible
for premature deterioration in the
condition of roads in the country.
Studies in developed countries have
established that for every increase
in axle load beyond the permissible
limit, the extent of damage caused
to roads increases exponentially. It
has been assessed that overloaded
freight vehicles are responsible for
approximately 60 per cent more
damage to the road surface as op-
posed to legally loaded vehicles.
Research carried out in South
Africa has shown that 10 per cent
overloading of goods in excess of
the prescribed limit reduces the life
of pavement by about 35 per cent.
Unbalanced loading of trucks is also
considered to be harmful. Overload-
ed vehicles threaten road safety and
cause many fatal accidents on roads.
A recent study has revealed that
overloading of vehicles involves
unavoidable risks. The overloaded
vehicle becomes less stable and
very difficult to steer, and will take
a longer time to halt. It causes over-
heating of tyres which increases the
chance of premature failure or blow-
outs. Driver control of such a vehi-
cle is much reduced, making it more
accident prone. The vehicle cannot
accelerate, making it extremely dif-
ficult to manoeuvre. Brakes have to
work harder because the vehicle be-
comes heavier. Brakes overheat and
lose their effectiveness in stopping
the vehicle, and suspension system
comes under stress.
In short, the overloaded vehicle
is a serious concern for safety, and
the life of the vehicle is also reduced
considerably. Since the percentage
of goods transported by roads is in-
creasing, heavy overloaded vehicles
would remain a common sight on
Indian roads in future.
Overloading should never be al-
lowed to continue unchecked for
long. Law enforcement agencies
need to take stringent action against
the operators of overloaded vehi-
cles. Compliance could be achieved
through a combination of enforce-
special article
By A. Peer Mohammed, President, Pondicherry Goods Transporters’ Association