[avdhesh15]

Hilarious! Rather than thinking of replacing autos with safer modes of transport, we now want to put seat belts!

IMO, first of all we should teach these guys how to drive their vehicles. Most drivers are brainless. Just last night when I was driving straight, an auto in the lane to my left decided to take a sudden right. I braked with all my might and swerved the car otherwise I would have surely smacked the guy headfirst and he would have toppled over. This is not a stray incident and happens all the time.

Second, incentivise manufacturers to come out with cheap 4-wheeled options. An example could be the Nano when launched for Rs 1 lac. Basic car with decent safety offered to passengers would be much better.

Third, get their licenses, pollution and auto quality under check. Most of these autos are decades old and running in dilapidated condition. I personally have noted the new series of autos in Mumbai (MH-02-D series) and try to only sit in them when Ola/Uber is not possible. At least my back is protected because they are newer.

Four, let Ola/Uber run and provide customers with cheaper options. Let them give competition to these autos rather than taking them off the road because these notorious autos and cabs are losing out. Let it be a free economy and I believe automatically over a period of time things will get better. I have spoken to a few Ola/Uber drivers who used to be auto/cab drivers in the past but have switched and are much, much happier off.

I agree we need ground breaking solutions but putting seat belts in autos is nowhere close to a practical solution.

[GKMahajan]

I remember reading an article about 15~20 years ago in a Pune newspaper. It talked about a protest by 3 wheeler auto rickshaw owners/drivers - protesting the arrival of 6 seaters. On the same page, there was a section called (something like) '25 years ago - on this day'. In this section, there was a news about tonga owners and driver going on strike - protesting the arrival of 3-wheeler auto rickshaws!

When will everybody realize that only the fit will survive!

If the autos do not evolve, then they will perish. Just the other day, I was explaining to my wife how our 10 lakh car makes us spend half of what it costs to take a rick! Earlier, you needed a minimum critical mass of passengers to justify a car. Now it does not make a sense to take a rick - unless parking at the destination is a major issue!

Hence, on this front, I am with the new suggestion. Let us make the travel in a public vehicle safer....

This does not mean seat belts are enough or adequate, just that it is a good step in the right direction. This means that we still have to do the structural improvements, etc, etc.. Why should we say that either we will have 'ideal' rick or we will continue with the existing setup? Let us make incremental changes and let us not stop making improvements.

[1.2TSI7DSG]

My views:-

We cannot completely replace AutoRixas due to its cost effective design and the portion of economy which thrives on the autorixas (rite from to the driver to the manufacturers)

Most of the accidents involving Autorixas involve rollovers. For this the government is doing nothing. Neither the Government has any mechanism to test the safety in cases of roll overs nor basic requirement for rollover structure strength.

Secondly on the highways, lights, wrong side driving and lane indiscipline are the causes of the accidents, which again are not addressed directly. (if adding a seatbelt will impart discipline and knowledge to the driver is a case unknown)

With more than 3 lakhs rixas in Mumbai, Police revenues will definitely increase (directly or indirectly again is a case unknown)

My suggestion- :offtopic

ARAI should move to E Rixas with speed limit of 40 kms Infra for which should be developed by Govt - this should be used to all distances less than 5 km (Most of the accidents will be controlled- no overloading due to reduced capacity, no pollution, no sharp acceleration)

As for the current ones- they are best left untouched- pathetic maintenance, rowdy drivers, cheating, indiscipline should be treated by a different force - something like the OLA/Uber cabs did to the Mumbai taxi unions

Thanks

PS survey done by someone some time back is attached
RixaSurvey.pdf

[chaudh2s]

Rather than mandating seat belts in auto rikhshaws, it would have been better had the ARAI enforced the rickshaw manufacturers to limit the steering turning angle to like 5-10 degrees or a turning radius of 6-7 m. This would make them safer for other road users. Am fed up of these autos darting in and out of gaps.

[ajitkommini]

It's been a MINIMUM of 5 years since I've taken an autorickshaw to go anywhere in Bangalore. If I can't walk, or drive myself I take a cab. To me there is no more evocative symbol of living in a 3rd world country than to see this antiquated form of transport every time I step out.

[windrider]

Its high time that Auto-rickshaws be replaced by safer vehicles, like Mahindra JEETO etc, which although not extremely strong, has a basic body shell which offers atleast some form of safety. First of, this business of stuffing schoolkids into an auto must be banned. Its laughable that even in 2015, the Indian Govt allows the general public to travel in such an Unstable, unsafe vehicle. A 3 wheeler, with no doors, proper roof or seat-belts?? Jesus wept

[virage]

Seat belts? Why could they add another wheel to these death karts. With no roof the thing is basically has no rigidity. The floor collapses under the slightest of impacts.
With the amount of lobbying that's going on, I dont think the government is capable of enforcing any safety features.

[Shreyans_Jain]

It is high time that contraptions like autorickshaws are done away with. We need safer and more contemporary options for basic public transport.

Autos, I believe, are relics from our third world past that we are just clinging on to.You will never find anything like them in developed countries. Never.

Considering how much money a new so-called 'basic' auto costs, it really should not be that difficult to replace it with, say, a base model Tata Nano. That will be a safer, sturdier, less polluting and a weatherproof alternative for not much extra initial cost. And going by the economy figures my tempo-wala claims for this fleet of CNG Piaggio 3 wheelers, a CNG Nano will actually be cheaper to run.

[suresh_gs]

More than enforcing the seat belt rule, I would suggest the following to the govt of India to seriously think about

1. Autos are strictly meant to carry 3+1 passengers and not anything beyond that.
2. Kindly enforce the ban on autos carrying children to school. The reason being the autos are overloaded with these kids and you never know when the vehicle can topple.
3. Make it compulsory for the passengers in the auto including the driver to wear helmet. More than the seat belt, I feel wearing helmet is more of a life saving option in case the occupants are thrown out.
4. Restrict the speed of the autos to 40 km/hr by installing speed governors. How often we have seen the drivers rip like maniacs.
5. With immediate effect, make it mandatory for all autos to have headlights fixed on the vehicles. On couple of occasions while driving the night, i spotted auto coming in the wrong direction at the last moment. Reason: the auto did not have headlight
6. For the concept of using the vehicle similar to share auto, I would say go for a 4 wheeler like TATA MAGIC and not the regular auto

[Doge]

ARAI should just stick to their far from reality FE tests. Instead of getting rid of auto's , they want to get lap belts on an ancient piaggio driven by desi Nigel Manson's. What about the roof which has the structural integrity of an umbrella?

Might as well add those toddler's bicycle side wheels at the front. Would give them some much needed stability.

[Lalvaz]

Originally Posted by roy_libran

I have myself been in 2 accidents, years back, in Auto-Rickshaws.

- In one case, the Auto rammed into a vehicle that braked hard in front, and a tractor rammed us from the back. I was sitting in the middle rear seat and my face rammed the driver's back-rest, causing extensive lacerations to the right side of my face. The two other occupants also suffered injuries as they were thrown out by the impact.
- In the other case, the driver had a Front Tyre Burst while coming down a Flyover, and the Auto Over-Turned. My arm and body on the right side, had bruises, because I got hurled on the road.

In both cases, had their been seat-belts, I would have been definitely less injured.
I think, this may be a good and welcome move.

Originally Posted by Aakarsh

Actually we should appreciate the initiatives being taken by ARAI as well as manufacturers regarding safety aspects in regard to road transportation inspite of critisizing them. Don't forget how we people criticize them for not enacting any proper regulations when we see increasing number of posts in the ''accident thread''.
We should be thankful to god that atleast new proposals and regulations are being made regarding road safety. I believe something is always better than nothing. Yes it is possible that it could not be proved to be a wise idea when structural rigidity of auto rickshaws is taken into account but there is always a probablity that it acts as a life saver for someone in any future mishap.
Atleast people will become conscious regarding road safety aspects and we can hope that someday in near future more laws and proposals would be made and appreciated by all of us and certainly it will change the scenario in a very positive manner.

While I understand your sentiments regarding the need for improved safety in auto rickshaws, this stupid proposal is not supported by facts. Please let me explain why:

1) A seatbelt is effective mainly in reducing frontal injuries, hence it is not even mandatory in many countries including India for people in the rear to belt up, simply because they are less likely to hit the front windshield/dashboard in the event of an accident.
See more information on seatbelt and child restraints here: http://www.who.int/roadsafety/projec...l_module_1.pdf

2) A seatbelt needs to be securely anchored to a stable structure, so that it can hold the weight of the passenger/driver safely and prevent him from hitting the object in front in the event of a sudden de-acceleration of the vehicle on collision.

My question to you is Where are the stable anchor points in a rickshaw?

ARAI is a cabal of automobile manufacturers who want to show that they are concerned about safety and regulations in automobiles, but ARAI does practically no independent research and testing. Case in point being that they were unable to detect the emission cheating software in their independent tests of VW cars. All they do is test fuel efficiency figures in their dream world idyllic conditions.

If ARAI was so concerned about safety, why don't they release crash test results which they claim to conduct? Those jokers do not even bother to reply to emails or letters asking for such reports, and you expect me to believe that they are concerned about my safety? I'm not buying such a hare brained proposal.

If you still think that putting seatbelts in auto rickshaws will help improve safety in cases where people fall out of rickshaws, then you should also implement seatbelts on 2 wheelers. Many more people get hurt while falling off their bikes or scooters. They will all thank you and ARAI for this lovely initiative to improve their safety.

[roy_libran]

Originally Posted by Lalvaz

1) A seatbelt is effective mainly in reducing frontal injuries, hence it is not even mandatory in many countries including India for people in the rear to belt up, simply because they are less likely to hit the front windshield/dashboard in the event of an accident.

I largely agree with your observations. However, if you look at my Accident 1 above, you would find that the Right side of my face collided with the Driver's Backrest, and was badly bruised and lacerated. The backrest was made of metal with protruding screws etc. A seat-belt, would definitely have helped in avoiding these injuries.

I don't want to get into the Design aspects of installing the seat-belt, since I am not competent to do that. But, a rudimentary seat belt shouldn't be too difficult to setup, between the Rear Seat Base Frame and the Top Frame of the Back-Rest. Such a design may not be ideal for vehicles travelling at higher speeds, but may be able to provide a basic level of restraint in such low speed vehicles. As I said, let's leave it to the designers to solve this problem.

[Lalvaz]

Originally Posted by roy_libran

I largely agree with your observations. However, if you look at my Accident 1 above, you would find that the Right side of my face collided with the Driver's Backrest, and was badly bruised and lacerated. The backrest was made of metal with protruding screws etc. A seat-belt, would definitely have helped in avoiding these injuries.

I don't want to get into the Design aspects of installing the seat-belt, since I am not competent to do that. But, a rudimentary seat belt shouldn't be too difficult to setup, between the Rear Seat Base Frame and the Top Frame of the Back-Rest. Such a design may not be ideal for vehicles travelling at higher speeds, but may be able to provide a basic level of restraint in such low speed vehicles. As I said, let's leave it to the designers to solve this problem.

The back rest itself is not fixed and comes off in a jiffy. I understand your point, but is'nt it a better idea to require the manufacturer to design a vehicle with no sharp/hard objects jutting out to prevent injuries in the first place?

It just goes to show that ARAI approves poorly designed vehicles as being fit to ply on Indian roads. Frankly we need an independent regulator, which the ARAI is not.

Secondly, is ARAI now going to mandate the use of seat belts in the case of rear seat occupants?

Thirdly, do you really believe it will be possible to implement this in the real world?

[psp62in]

Introduction of seat belts in Autos should be welcome! Obviously, the design aspects will have to be looked into by the experts at ARAI and others institutes. (For example, why not have a Belt-in-Seat or a four-point belt system?)
Once introduced, and with carrot and stick policy by the RTOs, slowly it will take roots. I see many more car drivers using the seat belts and more bike riders using helmets these days than a few years back.
Its better to take small steps rather than expect quantum jumps and do nothing.

[blackwasp]

Autos need phasing out slowly. Not only are they unsafe, they hog the roads and most of them are driven with no concern for the other road users. And they are no longer economical. My home to vashi highway is quoted as Rs 25 for share auto and Rs 20 for AC volvo from KDMT ! And seatbelts ? I doubt they'd actually be useful in an auto. They roof is just a tarp supported by a few metal rods for shape. I doubt it'll help in roll overs.

Also, except short distances, UberGo is cheaper than auto in mumbai.