According to the official records, the BEST buses caused the death of 16 people between April and November this year.
BEST officials must be smiling from ear to ear. This year saw a considerable drop in the number of fatal accidents involving BEST buses — from 49 last year to 18 till date, as per the official records accessed by DNA.
In fact, if one were to go by the current trend, the projected total number of fatal accidents — 24 — will still rank as the third lowest in the undertaking’s post-Independence history. Formerly known as the Bombay Electric Supply and Tramways Company Limited, the undertaking recorded its lowest count of fatal accidents in 1947-1948, when its fleet of 242 buses caused the death of 17 people. The year 1952-1953 came a close second, with 23 deaths.
According to the official records, the BEST buses caused the death of 16 people between April and November this year. Add to that two more recorded deaths of citizens in December until now.
Thus, three months before the shutters go down on the year, there have been 18 fatal accidents involving BEST buses. Assuming this trend of two deaths each month continues, there will be 24 deaths by the year-end. This would mean that in the BEST undertaking’s history, the current financial year saw the third lowest number of fatal deaths — a marked improvement over the previous year, which saw 49 fatal accidents and 50 deaths.
Senior BEST officials said there wasn’t any special effort responsible for the considerable drop in the number of fatal accidents. “We only ensured that the existing norms and procedures were strictly followed. Not too long ago, the attitude was very lax and this resulted in shocking instances of negligence. Now, the screws have been tightened. Earlier, a section of bus drivers who had a bad record of observance of traffic rules could get away due to lack of interest in dealing strictly with negligent driving. Now, they are forced to undergo a refresher’s training course for seven days . Also, new drivers who cause fatal accidents are dismissed and not suspended. This has acted as a deterrent,” an official said.
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