CHAPTER VIII
CONTROL OF TRAFFIC
112.
Limits of Speed,- (1) No person shall drive or cause or allow
a motor vehicle to be driven in any public place at a speed exceeding the
maximum speed or below the minimum speed fixed for the vehicle under this Act
or by or under any other law for the time being in force:
Provided that such maximum speed shall in no case exceed the
maximum fixed by for any motor vehicle or class or description of motor
vehicles by the Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette:
(2) The State Government or any Authority
authorised in this behalf by the State Government may, if satisfied that it is
necessary to restrict the speed of motor vehicles in the interests of public
safety of convenience or because of the nature of nay road or bridge, by notification in the Official Gazetter, and by
causing appropriate traffic signs to be
placed or erected under section 116 at suitable places, fis such maximum
speed limits or minimum speed limits as it thinks fit for motor vehicles or any specified class or
description of motor vehicles to which a trailer is attached, either generally
or in a particular area or on a particular road or roads:
Provided that no
such notification is necessary if any restriction under this section is to
remain in force for not more than one month.
(3) Nothing in this
section shall apply to any vehicle registered under section 60 while it is
being used in the execution of military manoeuvres within the area and during the
period specified in the notification under sub-section (1) of section 2 of the
Manoruvres, Field Firing and Artillery Practice Act, 1938 (5 0f 1938)
113. Limits of weight and limitations
on use,- (2) Except as may be
otherwise prescribed, no person shall drive or cause or allow to be driven in
any public place any motor vehicle which is not fitted with pneumatic tyres.
(2) Except as may be
otherwise prescribed, no person shall drive or cause or allow to be driven in
any public place any motor vehicle which is not fitted with pneumatic tyres.
(3) No person shall
drive or cause or allow to be driven in any public place any motor vehicle or
trailer –
(a) the unladen
weight of which exceeds the unladen weight specified in the certificate of
registration of the vehicle, or
(b) the unladen
weight of which exceeds the gross vehicle
weight specified in the certificate of
registration of the vehicle.
(4) Where the
driver or person in charge of a motor vehicle or trailer driven in
contravention of of sub-section (2) or clause (a) of sub-section (3) is not the
owner, a Court may presume that the offense was committed with the knowledge of
or under the orders of the owner of the motor vehicle of trailer.
114. Power to have vehicles weighed,- (1) Any officer of the Motor Vehicles Department
authorised in this behalf be Central Government shall, if it has reason to
believe that a goods vehicle or trailer
is being used in contravention of section 113, required the driver to convey the
vehicle to a weighing device, if any, within a distance of ten kilometres from
any point on the forward route or within a distance of twenty kilometres from
the destination of the vehicle for weighment; and if on such weighment the
vehicle is found to contravene in any respect the provision of section 113
regarding the weight, be may, by order in writing, direct the driver to
off-load the excess weight at his own risk and not to remove the vehicle or
trailer form that place until the laden
weight had been reduced or the vehicle or trailer has otherwise been
dealt with so that it complies with section 113 and on receipt of such notice,
the driver shall comply with such directions.
(2)
Where the person authorised under sub-section (1) makes the said order
in writing, he shall also endorse the relevant details of the overloading on
the goods carriage permit and also intimate the fact of such endorsement t the
authority which issued that permit.
115. Power to restrict the use of
vehicles,- (1) The State Government or any authority authorised in
this behalf by the State Government, If satisfied that it is necessary in the
interest of public safety or convenience, or because of the nature of any road
or bridge, may by notification in the Official Gazette, prohibit or restrict,
subject to the exceptions and conditions as may be specified in the
notification, the driving on motor vehicles or of any specified class or
description on motor vehicles or of the
use of trailers either generally or in a specified area or on a
specified road and when any such prohibition or restriction is imposed shall
cause appropriate traffic signs to be placed or erected under section 113 at
suitable places:
Provided
that where any prohibition or restriction under this section is to remain in
force for not more than one month, notification thereof in the Official Gazette
shall not be necessary, but such local publicity as the circumstances may
permit , shall be given of such prohibition or restriction
116. Power to erect traffic signs,- (1)
(a) The State Government or any suitable authority authorised in this behalf by
the State Government may cause or permit traffic signs to be placed or erected
in any public place for the purpose of bringing public notice any speed limits
fixed under sub-section (2) of section 112 or any prohibitions or restrictions
imposed under section 115 or generally for the purpose of regulating motor
vehicle traffic.
(b) A State Government or any authority
authorised in this behalf by the State Government may, by notification in the
official gazette, or by the erection of at suitable places of the appropriate
sighs referred to in part A of the Schedule, designate certain roads as main
roads for the purpose of the driving regulations made by the Central Government.
(2) Traffic signs placed or erected under
sub-section (1) for any purpose for which provision is made in the Schedule
shall be of the size, colour and type and shall have the meanings set forth in
the Schedule, but the State Government or nay authority empowered in this
behalf by the State Government may make or authorise the addition to any sign set forth in the said Schedule, of
transcriptions of the words, letters or figures thereon in such script as the
State Government may think fit, provided that the transcriptions shall be of
any similar size and colour to the words, letters or figures set forth in the
Schedule.
(3) Except as provided by sub-section (1), no
traffic signs shall, after the commencement of this Act, be placed or erected
on or near any road, but all traffic signs placed or erected prior to the
commencement of this Act by any competent authority shall for the purpose of
this Act be deemed to be traffic signs placed or erected under the provisions
of sub-section (1).
(4) A State Government may, by notification
in the Official Gazette, empower any police
officer not below the rank of a Superintended of police to remove or
cause to be removed any sign or advertisement which is so placed in his opinion
as to obscure any traffic from view or any sign or advertisement which is in
his opinion so similar in appearance to a traffic sign as to be misleading or
which in his opinion is likely to distract the attention or concentration of
the driver.
(5) No person shall wilfully remove, alter,
deface or in any way tamper with, any traffic signs place or erected under this
section.
(6) If any person occidentally causes such
damage to a traffic sign as renders it useless for the purpose for which it is
placed on erected under this section, ha shall report the circumstances of the
occurrence to a police officer or at a police station as soon as possible, and
in any case within twenty four hours of the occurrence.
(7) For the purpose of bringing the signs set
forth in the First Schedule conformity with any International Convention
relating to motor vehicle traffic to which the Central Government is for the
time being a party, the Central Government may, by notification in the official
Gazette, make any addition or alteration to any such sign and on the issue of
any such notifications, the First
Schedule shall be deemed to be amended accordingly.
117. Parking places and halting places,
- The State Government or any authority authorised in this behalf by
the state Government may, in consultation with the local authority having
jurisdiction in the area concerned determine places at which motor vehicles may
stand either indefinitely or for a specified period of time, and may determine
the places at which public service vehicles may stop for a longer time than in
necessary for taking up and setting down of passengers.
118. Driving regulations, - The
Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make
regulations for the driving of motor vehicles.
119. Duty to obey traffic signs,- (1)
Every driver of a motor vehicle shall drive in conformity with any indication
given by mandatory traffic sign and in conformity with the driving regulations
made by the Central Government, and shall comply with all directions given by
any police officer for the time being engaged in the regulation of traffic in
any public place.
(2) In this section “mandatory traffic sign”
means a traffic sign included in Part A f the First Schedule or any traffic
signs of similar form ( that is to say, consisting of or including a circular
disc displaying a device, word or figure and having a red ground or border)
placed or erected for the purpose of regulating motor vehicle traffic under sub-section (1) of section 116.
120. Vehicles with left hand control ,- No
person shall drive or cause or allow to be driven in any public place any motor
vehicle with a left hand steering control unless it is equipped with a
mechanical or electrical signalling device of a prescribed nature and in working
order.
121. Signals and signalling devices ,- The
driver of a motor vehicle shall make such signals and on such occasions as may
be prescribed by the Central Government:
Provided
that signal of an intention to turn to the right or left or to stop-
(a)
in the case of a motor vehicle with a right hand steering control, may
be given by a mechanical
or
electrical device of a prescribed nature affixed to the vehicle; and
(b) in the case of a motor vehicle with a left
hand steering control, shall be given by a mechanical or electrical device of a
prescribed nature affixed to the vehicle:
Provided further
that the state Government may, having regard to the width and condition of the
roads in any area or route, by notification in the Official Gazette, exempt
subject t such conditions as may be specified therein any motor vehicle or
class or description of motor vehicle from the operation of this section for
the purpose of plying in that area or route.
122. Leaving vehicle in dangerous position, - No
person in charge of a motor vehicle shall cause or allow the vehicle or any trailer to be abandoned or to
remain at rest on any public place in such a position or in such a condition or
in such circumstances as to cause or likely to cause danger, obstruction or
undue inconvenience to other users of the public place or to the passengers.
123. Riding on running board etc, - (1) No
person driving or in charge of a motor
vehicle shall carry any person or permit any person to be carried on the
running board or otherwise than within the body of the motor vehicle.
(2) No person shall travel on the running board
or on the top or on the bonnet of a motor vehicle.
124. Prohibition against travelling without pass or
ticket, - (1) No person shall either enter or remain in
any stage carriage for the purpose of travelling therein unless he has with him
a proper pass or ticket:
Provided that
where arrangements for the supply of tickets are made in the stage carriage for
the purpose of travelling therein the stage carriage by which a person has to
travel, a person may enter such a stage carriage but as soon as may be after
his entry therein, he shall make the payment of his fare to the conductor or
the driver who performs the functions of a conductor and obtain form such
conductor or driver, as the case may be, a ticket for his journey.
Explanation,- In this section ,-
(a) “pass” means a duty, privilege or courtesy pass entitling the person
to whom it is given to
travel in a stage carriage gratuitously and includes a pass issued on
payment for travel
in a stage carriage for the period specified therein;
(b) “ticket” includes a single
ticket, a return ticket or a season ticket.
125. Obstruction to driver,- No person
driving a motor vehicle shall allow any person to stand or sit or to place
anything in such manner or position as to hamper the driver in his control of
the vehicle.
126.Stationary vehicles, - No person
driving or in charge of a motor vehicle shall cause or allow the vehicle to
remain stationary in any public place, unless there is in the driver’s seat a
person duly authorised to drive the vehicle or unless the mechanism has been
stopped and a brake or brakes applied or such other measures taken as to ensure
that the vehicle cannot occidentally be put in motion in the absence of the
driver.
127. Removal of motor vehicles abandoned or left
unattended on a public place, - (1) Where any motor vehicle is
abandoned or left unattended on a public place for ten yours or more, or is
parked in a place where parking is legally prohibited, its removal by a towing
service or its immobilizations by any means including wheel clamping may be
authorized by a police officer in uniform having jurisdiction.
(2) Where an
abandoned, unattended, wrecked, burnt or partially dismantled vehicle is
creating traffic hazard because of its position in relation to the public place
or its physical appearance is causing the impediment to the traffic, its
immediate removal from the public place by a towing service may be authorised
by a police officer having jurisdiction.
(3) Where a vehicle is authorised to be removed
under sub-section (1) of sub-section (2) by a police officer the owner of the vehicle shall be responsible for all towing
costs, besides any other penalty.
128. Safety measures for drivers an pillion drivers, -
(1) No driver of a two wheeled motor cycle shall carry more than one
person in addition to himself on the motor cycle and no such person shall be
otherwise than sitting on a proper seat securely fixed to the motor cycle
behind the drivers seatwiht appropriate safety measures.
(2) In addition t
to the safety measures in sub-section (1), the Central Government may, prescribe
other safety measures for the drivers of two-wheeled motor cycle and pillion
riders thereon.
129. Wearing of protective headgear, - (1) Every
person driving or riding otherwise than in a side car on a motor cycle of any
class or description shall, while in public place, wear protective headgear
conforming to the standards of Bureau of
Standard:
Provided that the
provisions of this section shall not
apply to a person who is a Sikh, if he is, while driving or riding a motor
cycle in a public place, wearing a turban:
Provided further
that the State Government may, by such rules, provide for such exemptions as it
may think fit.
Explanation,- “Protective headgear”
means a helmet which-
(a) by virtue of its shape, material and construction, could be
reasonable be expected to
afford to the person driving or riding on a motor cycle a degree of
protection from
injury in the event of an accident, and
(b) is securely fastened to the
head of the wearer by means of straps or other fastening
provided on the headgear.
130. Duty to produce license and certificate of
registration, - (1) The driver of a motor vehicle in any public
place shall, on demand by any police officer in uniform, produce the license
for examination:
Provided that the
driver may, if his license has been submitted to, or has been seized by, any
officer or authority under this or any other Act, produce in lieu of the
license a receipt or other acknowledgement issued by such officer or authority
in respect thereof and thereafter produce the license within such period, in
such manner as the Central Government may prescribe to the police officer making
the demand.
(2) The conductor, if any, of a motor vehicle in
any public place shall, on demand by any officer of the Motor Vehicle
Department authorised in this behalf, produce the license for examination.
(3) The owner of a motor vehicle other than a
vehicle registered under section 60, or in his absence the driver or other
person in charge of the vehicle shall, on demand by a registering authority or
any other officer of the Motor Vehicles Department duly authorised in this
behalf, produce the certificate of insurance of the vehicle and, where the
vehicle is a transport vehicle, also the
certificate of fitness referred to in section 56 and the permit, and if any or
all of the certificates or the permit are not in his possession, he shall
within fifteen days from the date of demand, submit photocopies of the same,
duly attested in person or send the same by registered post to the officer who
demanded it.
Explanation:- For
the purpose of this sub-section certificate of insurance means the certificate
issued under sub-section (3) of section 147.
(4) If the
license referred to in sub-section (2) or the certificates or permit referred
to in sub-section (3) as the case may be, are not at the time in the possession
of the person to whom the demand is
made, it shall be sufficient compliance with this section if such person
produces the license or permit within such period in such manner as the Central
Government may prescribe to eh police officer or authority making the demand:
Provided that, except
to such extent and with such modifications as may be prescribed, the provisions
of this sub-section shall not apply to any person required to produce the
certificate of registration or the certificate of fitness of a transport
vehicle.
131. Duty of the driver to take certain precautions at
unguarded railway crossings, - (1) Every driver of a motor vehicle
at the approach of any unguarded railway lever crossing shall cause the vehicle
to stop and the driver of the vehicle shall cause the conductor or cleaner or
attendant or any other person in the vehicle to walk upto the crossing and
ensure that not train or trolley is approaching from either side and then pilot
the motor vehicle across such a lever crossing, and where no conductor or
cleaner or attendant or any other person Is available in the vehicle, the
driver of the vehicle shall get down from the vehicle himself to ensure that no
train or trolley is approaching form either side before the railway track is
crossed.
132. Duty of driver to stop in certain cases, - (1)
The driver of a motor vehicle shall cause the vehicle to stop and remain
stationary so long as may for such reasonable time as may be necessary, but not
exceeding twenty four hours:
(a) when
required to do so by any police officer not below the rank of a Sub Inspector
in uniform,
in
the event of the vehicle being involved in the occurrence of any accident to a
person, animal
or
vehicle or of damage to property, or
(b) when
required to do so by any person in charge of an animal if such person
apprehends that
the
animal is, or being alarmed by the vehicle will become unmanageable.
© Omitted wef 14-11-1994
and he shall give his name and
address and the name and address of the owner of the vehicle to any person
affected by any such accident or damage who demands it provided such person
also furnished his name and address.
(2) The driver of a motor vehicle
shall, on demand by a person giving his own name and address and alleging that
the driver has committed an offence punishable under section 184 give his name
and address to that person.
(3) In this section the
expression “animal” means any horse, cattle, elephant, camel. Ass, mule, sheep or goat.
133. Duty of owner of a motor vehicle to
give information, - (1) The owner of a motor vehicle , driver or
conductor of which is accused of any offence under this Act shall, on the
demand of any police officer authorised in this behalf by the State Government,
give all information regarding the name and address of, and the license held
by, the driver or a conductor which is in his possession or could by reasonable
diligence be ascertained by him.
134. Duty of driver in case of accident
and injury to a person, - When any person is injured or any property
of a third party is damaged, as a result of an accident in which a motor
vehicle is involved, the driver of the vehicle or other person in charge of the
vehicle shall-
(a) unless it is not practicable to do so on
account of mob fury or any other reason beyond his
control, take all reasonable steps to
secure medical attention for the injured
person by conveying
him to the nearest medical practitioner
of hospital, and it shall be the duty of every registered
medical practitioner of the doctor or
duty in the hospital to attend to the injured person and
render medical aid or treatment without
waiting for any procedural formalities unless the injured
person or his guardian, in case he is a
minor, desires otherwise;
(b) give on demand
by any police officer any information required him or, if no police officer is
present,
report the circumstances, if any, for not taking reasonable steps to secure
medical
attention
as required under clause (a), at the nearest police station as soon as
possible, and in any
case,
within twenty four hours of the occurrence.
© give the
following information in writing to the insurer, who has issued the certificate
of insurance, about the circumstances of the accident, namely,-
(i) insurance policy number and
period or its validity;
(ii) date, time and place of
accident;
(iii) particulars of the persons
injured or killed in the accident;
(iv) name and address of the
driver and the particulars of his driving license.
Explanation:- For the purpose of this
section, the expression “driver” includes the owner of the vehicle
135. Scheme
to be provided for the investigation of accident cases and wayside amenities, etc.,- (1) The State
Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make one or more
schemes to provide for-
(a) an in depth study study on causes and
analysis of motor vehicles accidents;
(b) wayside amenities on highways;
© traffic aid posts on highways; and
(d) truck parking complexes along highways.
(2)
Every scheme made under this section by any State Government shall be
laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before the State Legislative.
136. Inspection of vehicles involved in accident,- When
any accident occurs in which a motor vehicle is involved, any person authorised
in this behalf by the State Government
may, on production if so required by the authority, inspect the vehicle
and for that purpose may enter at any reasonable time any premises where the
vehicle may be, and may remove the vehicle for examination. Provided that the
place to which the vehicle is removed shall be intimated to the owner of the
vehicle and shall be returned after completion of the formalities to the owner,
driver or the person in charge of the vehicle within twenty four hours.
137. Power of central Government to make rules,- The
Central Government may make rules to provide for all or any of the following
matters, namely,
(a) the occasions on which signals shall be made
by the drivers of motor vehicles and such signals
under section 121;
(b) the manner in which the license and
certificates may be produced to the police officer, under
section 130.
138. Power of
State Government to make rules,- (1) Inspection
of vehicles involved in accident,- The state Government may make rules
for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this Chapter other
than the matters specified in section 137.
(2) Without
generality of the foregoing power, such rules may be provided for –
(a) the removal and safe custody
of vehicles including their loads which have broken down or
which have been left abandoned on the road;
(b) the installation and use of weighting
devices;
© the maintenance and management of wayside
amenities complexes;
(d) the exemption from all or any
of the provisions of this Chapter of Fire Brigade vehicles,
ambulances and other special classes of description of vehicle, subject
to such conditions as
may be prescribed;
(e) the maintenance and
management of parking places and stands and the fees, if any, which
may be charged for their use;
(f) prohibiting the driving
downhill of a motor vehicle with the gear disengaging either
generally of a specified place;
(g) prohibiting the taking hold
of or mounting a motor vehicle in
motion;
(h) prohibiting the use of
footpaths for pavements by motor vehicles;
(i) generally, the prevention of danger, injury
or annoyance to the public or any person, or of
dander or injury to property or of obstruction to traffic; and
(j) any other matter which is to be, or may be,
prescribed.
