Speed breakers are raised areas of pavement designed to slow down drivers. Although they can improve safety, they have many drawbacks. The process of slowing and diverting traffic is often called traffic calming.
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| Speed Humps |
Speed humps differ from speed bumps.
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| Speed Bumps |
Speed bumps are 3-4 inches high and 1-3 feet long and have typically been used in parking lots and on private roads. To pass over speed bumps without doing damage to the vehicle or causing discomfort, the driver must slow down almost to a complete stop. The effects of speed bumps are diminished by passing over them at excessive speeds in a vehicle with loose suspension.
Speed humps are 3-4 inches high and 12-22 feet long. They are found on residential roadways. To avoid driver discomfort, the driver slows to a speed of 15-20 mph. Unlike speed bumps, at excessive speeds, the effects of speed humps are increased to the point of jolting both the driver and their cargo.
The procedure for installation begins with the residents’ request and continues with traffic engineering studies to determine the need for speed humps. These studies include but are not limited to: safe sight distance, pedestrian studies, vehicle classification, traffic count, and average speed. Current land use, school routes, "as built" plans, other control devices, and stop sign compliance should also be examined.
If it is determined that speed humps are the best solution for a roadway, then the installation can begin. The humps installed should follow the design criteria, have accompanying warning signs and be painted with a pattern that makes them visible to drivers and provide a safe and reasonable sight distance.
If designed, installed, and maintained properly, speed humps can be a safe, effective method of reducing vehicle speeds through residential areas.
To be effective along a section of roadway, speed humps should be placed in series at 200-600 feet intervals when considering the geometries of the roadway.
As per the Indian Road Congress (IRC) specifications, the central height of humps should be 10-12 cm. Their shape should be a parabola and should have 3.5 metres in width and length should be the same as the road width.
The list of drawbacks could go on and on if the breakers are not made with the correct specifications.
To name a few drawbacks......
If improperly lit, they could potentially cause fatalities.
They are damaging to the spine, to say the least.
The constant wear and tear of vehicles could be another big disadvantage.
A very interesting use of these breakers that hasn't been well utilized is:
"ELECTRICITY GENERATION FROM SPEED BREAKER"
A large amount of energy is generated at the speed breakers through friction, every time a vehicle passes over it.
This Mechanical energy is then converted to Electrical which can be used for charging batteries and to light up the streets, etc.
The existing source of energy such as coal, oil, etc may not be adequate to meet the ever increasing energy demands. These conventional sources of energy are also depleting and may be exhausted.
This project is a step to the path of exploring the possibilities of energy from several non- conventional energy sources.
Motivated by the activities undertaken by our leading dailies, I decided to chart one such myself. I travelled the highly congested stretch starting from Mazgaon circle upto JJ Hospital signal, via Noor Baug. It is a distance of a mere 1.3 km but the number, shapes and distances between speed breakers installed on this stretch is appalling.
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| Within 100 mts |
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| 100 mts |
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| 300 mts |
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| 400 mts |
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| 450 mts |
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| 500 mts |
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| 600 mts |
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| 900 mts |
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| 1000 mts |
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| 1050 mts |
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| 1100 mts |
This may be a similar plight on many other roads but it is upto the local authorities to take up these tasks and ensure corrective action before we witness any casualties.
"Yes Officer, I did see the 'speed limit' sign, I just didn't see you."
Does this translate as a victory for us? Or do we still have a long way to go before we celebrate!!
