[arin_12]

Do you think that the tractor should be banned/imposed some kind of restriction on the high way ? Following are few of the exp that i had in my recent travel. Even I dont know this tractor driver has a valid license to drive.
1. A tractor Comes in opposite lane in the 4 lane High Way.
2. A tractor with overloaded with freshly cut paddy, almost imvissible on the pitch dark HW. No tell lamp in the carrier.
3. A tractor with out any head light The driver is holding a torch to Identify his vehicle.
4. Slow moving at right lane.

[sudev]

Unless there is political will tractors (and other slow vehicles) will be bane of our highways.

Partially they are not to blame 'cause the alternate road network where they can be allowed does not exists nor are there any plans to build.

Compare this to highways where minimum speed limit is also imposed in interest of safety.

[yzfrj]

Originally Posted by arin_12

3. A tractor with out any head light The driver is holding a torch to Identify his vehicle.
4. Slow moving at right lane.

He he come to chennai man, you'll see really retarded truck drivers and cyclist doing the same thing without any light.

[ram2004]

for the tractor with a trailer who comes in from a lane in the left on to the highway. First, he doesnt look to his right and just drives on to the highway. Second, he assumes he has turned well and straightens the tractor but completely forgets that the trailer takes a wider turning circle. If you too are ignorant of this, then the trailer is bound to have a go at you if you are anywhere close!

The other tractor is the one who comes in from the right just at the gap provided for the U turn on a dual carriage way. He simply cuts across ignorant of the fact that the most of the vehicles are coming at good speed in the speed lane - and if there is a trailer the problem gets compounded.

And ofcourse please pardon those tractor drivers who attempt to overtake trucks and buses and block your entire way!

ram

[tsk1979]

Actually the law says that tractors cannot be used on highways except for transporting produce from farm to mandi. Yet majority of tractors on roads do construction material duty illegaly, and cops look the other way. Tractors actually transporting produce are a small fraction.
Even they are required to sport tail lights etc., but police look the other way.

[SirAlec]

actually tractors have agricultural registration, and not commercial. In fact its banned on highways. But you should note that this is a land of Martutas and Jugad, if they can be allowed tractor is a proper factory build vehicle.

@ TSK.
In fact! You know what many traffic police owns them here in my place. How ironic.

[StarVegabond]

Hi

India is a democratic country, every indian has the right to use the infrastucture provided he follows the laws e.g. bought a vehicle, paid taxes, valid registration, license etc. Tracktor being a vehicle needs to be registered as well and driver needs to have a license and follow the rules.

More over the Agriculture is the subject, most of the sons of the soil hold close to their heart. 85%+ of India is rural and highways eventhough brings progress is an intrusion in the villagers (=farmers) life. In my view we motorists need to be a bit sensitive to this aspect as well. Often highway planning is done not considering the requirement of the villagers to cross over etc.

Ofcourse we need to have some safety regulations on the highways. The regulations should not be discriminatory to any specific class/type of the vehicles. it should be based on the speed limit (min/max), direction of travel, cross over points, driving on the wrong side of the road etc. More over there has to be mechanisms to enforce the already existing regulations. Unfortunately in our country regulations are enforced / followed as per convinience (e.g. every one is equal, but some are more equal)

I believe with education / training / exposure and enforcement as well as improvement in infrastructure and planning, the situation would improve.

[prince_pervez]

There exists seperate roads for the use of local vehicles running parallel to National Highways, atleast I have seen on at the Belgaum Kolhapur stretch of the NH4. Also some people do use them. The others don't know about this or are ignorant.

I know this thread might be dedicated to tractors only, but cyclist also don't pay any heed to safety of their own or others.
See, unless these gentlemen actually own sedans hatches suvs and use them on
highways, they will care little about how others feel.
In foreign countries, everyone owns trucks and sedans. They know how they feel
about neglect/disrespect when others commit mistakes on roads, and they
don't repeat the same when its their turn. They stick to lanes and know how to use them.
In this part of the world the slogan is: Its your life and you are responsible for it.
Please drive carefully all of u including me.
And really, it doesn't end at that. Even if we swerve to avoid some fatalities, people always blame the bigger (costlier here) vehicle. And then follows the bargaining and if it not really your day then the public 'dhulaee' (read Mob fury).
Here lack of financial resources and greed comes to play.
General people of India have along way to go, perhaps that includes me as well, you never know.

[Roy.S]

Originally Posted by StarVegabond

Hi

India is a democratic country, every indian has the right to use the infrastucture provided he follows the laws ........

I believe with education / training / exposure and enforcement as well as improvement in infrastructure and planning, the situation would improve.

Unfortunately people confuse democracy with the right to do as they please, anywhere they please with scant regard for others. The highway is no place for a tractor.
Of course, the condition of rural roads is so bad that the temptation to drive agricultural machinery on the 4 laners must be irresistible.
However, this is still not excusable.
Education and enforcement will not work too well unless the basic attitudes change.
I have no doubt that this will happen, but at a snails pace. In our country the wheels of change roll exceedingly slow and we must do all we can to speed this up.

[jango]

Tractors with trailers and no rear light ( park/brake lights ) have know to cause lots of accidents on highways. I personally have witnessed around 4-5 accidents on hosur rd in bangalore over a period of 3 years, mostly while returning home from work late night.

These tractors just merge into the main road and normally used to get banged by call center cabs who again are not good Samaritans on road.

I Franky believe that they should be banned on highways..

[prince_pervez]

Yes they should be banned, but again, enforcement of such laws is the key here. It shouldn't be just another souce of income reason for the law enforcement.

[sgiitk]

In the development of the GQ in order to save costs existing raods were upgraded to Dual Carriageway (not motorway) standards. Thus there is no alternative road.

Also, a lot were made toll roads. I have not seen this anywhere in Europe whether toll or othewise. In the UK quite often the motorway and the regular road run almost parallel. For the M4 there is A4, for the M3 there is A3 and so on. T

In this scenarion I think the tractors are a necesary evil on the roads. What must be done is enforcing that people do not go the wrong way. This will have to be enforced strictly on all - police, official tractors cyclists, trucks. Just see the number of vehicle in towns with flashing lights going up a one way street the wrong way with scant regard for the rules of the road. I ermember seeing major tractor accidents on the Mathura - Delhi section of the NH2 even in the early 80's. I think the number had now declined, possibly due to the number of casualities over the years.

[arin_12]

Originally Posted by yzfrj

He he come to chennai man, you'll see really retarded truck drivers and cyclist doing the same thing without any light.

Our own Hitech Bangalore city uses this Tractor as MUV. Water Tank, Garbage Carrier, Brick, Passengers and many more.

But in City you drive @ low speed where in HW you drive @ 3 digit. Stopping/ Negotiating this tractor is very difficult there. I think HW police should keep an eye on them... But again accident fetch more money to these police rather doing their Actual job.

[addyhemmige]

No offence to anyone here, but it is not fair to say we have to ban tractors.

Look at the picture from a rural perspective.

A farm owner has to sell his produce in the nearest town. How does he do it? he has to transport it in a tractor or a truck or a bullock cart. The nearest way to get to town is on a national highway. There are alternate village roads, but they are quite bad and also the distance is longer. Why would he waste money on extra fuel and extra time. He is not driving the tractor for free, he has paid his taxes. Is it his fault that the highway goes through his village? As someone in this forum pointed out, the highways may not be planned keeping the villages in mind & villages too, are affected by the growth of a highway in the middle of the village.
Also, please don't compare the situation in America to India. It is not at all fair.

I'm not saying that just because the tractors have the right to be on the road, they can drive however they want. Here is where the police come into the picture. They should ensure that all vehicles follow rules (including cars, bikes, trucks etc). We do have to educate tractor drivers and owners on the basics of highway driving.

It is certain maniacs who sit behind the wheel of a tractor who give a bad name to all others.

Just my 2 cents here

[lohithrao]

1 more to the list, the blaring noise of the tractors is unbearable. the empty or unloaded tractors speed is tested by many and the sound it makes when they floor the pedal... its sad!