goldenbeld termeulen lahorereport a 2000 03

A road safety plan for the city of Lahore

Dr. Charles Goldenbeld (SWOV) & Peter ter Meulen (ITC)

A-2000-3C o n f i d e n t i a l

A road safety plan for the city of Lahore

The road safety component of the Lahore Urban Transport Project;prepared under supervision of the World Bank

A-2000-3Dr. Charles Goldenbeld (SWOV) & Peter ter Meulen (ITC)Leidschendam, 2000SWOV Institute for Road Safety Research and the ITC Institute forTraffic Care, The Netherlands

Report documentation

Number: A-2000-3Title: A road safety plan for the city of LahoreSubtitle: The road safety component of the Lahore Urban Transport

Project; prepared under supervision of the World BankAuthor(s): Dr. Charles Goldenbeld (SWOV) & Peter ter Meulen (ITC)Research manager: Divera TwiskProject number SWOV: 69.915Contract no. client: A51463Client: The World Bank

Contents of the project: The Lahore Urban Transport Project (LUTP) in Pakistan aims atthe sustainable improvement of Lahore’s urban transportinfrastructure and services so that they meet the needs of thecity’s growing population and of its commerce and industry. Thisreport describes a road safety strategy and a road safety plan forLahore.

Number of pages: 135 pp.Published by: SWOV, Leidschendam, 2000

SWOV Institute for Road Safety ResearchP.O. Box 10902260 BB LeidschendamThe NetherlandsTelephone 31703209323Telefax 31703201261

SWOV Publication A-2000-3 3

Summary

This study is part of the Lahore Urban Transport Project (LUTP) in Pakistan.The objective of LUTP is the sustainable improvement of Lahore’s urbantransport infrastructure and services so that they meet the needs of thecity’s growing population and of its commerce and industry. This reportdescribes a road safety strategy and a road safety plan for Lahore.

The scope of the current project covered the following activities:- To review the road safety in the Lahore Metropolitan Area.- To review the adequacy of the institutional and legislative framework

(Traffic Code, police competences and traffic penalties) for provision ofroad safety.

- To review the existing traffic police operation in Lahore MetropolitanArea and training and peripheral activities such as driver licensing,vehicle inspection, procedures for ticketing and fines.

- To identify government and non-government organizations presentlyinvolved in traffic safety matters in Lahore Metropolitan Area.

- To recommend an institutional structure for coordinating the traffic safetysectors at the city level.

- To meet with stakeholders to discuss traffic safety issues and make apreliminary assessment of the level of safety awareness.

- To review ongoing traffic safety initiatives.- To update the status of accident data collection.- To organize a Traffic Safety Seminar bringing together the various

stakeholders and produce a consensus on a draft Traffic SafetyStrategy.

Most of these activities were performed in the period of March 25th- May 8th

1999 on location in Lahore. After an initial round of interviews with mainstakeholders, a workshop on road safety was organized in Lahore on April17th, 1999. This workshop and a subsequent round of interviews withstakeholders resulted in a road safety plan that was proposed and discussedin a seminar on road safety on May 7th, 1999 in Lahore.

The aforementioned activities have led to the present report which includesthree final products:1. A draft traffic safety strategy for Lahore Metropolitan Area discussed

with key stakeholders.2. A multi-year traffic safety plan for Lahore Metropolitan Area with a

prioritization of the most consequential traffic safety improvements andrelated institutional strengthening measures for implementation duringLUTP.

3. An implementation plan and Terms of Reference for preparation andimplementation of these prioritized traffic safety improvements andrelated institutional strengthening measures for inclusion in the LUTP.

4 SWOV Publication A-2000-3

The proposed road safety strategy is focussed on seven points that can beand must be realized in the period 2000-2005:1. A steering committee responsible for road safety policy.2. Legislation adapted to present day conditions.3. Non-corrupt and authoritative enforcement of traffic rules.4. Engineering based on clear standards and attuned to the safety needs of

non-motorized traffic modes.5. Traffic education of children and the general public.6. An integrated system of driver training, testing and licensing.7. Well-organized traffic management.

For each of these points the report briefly recapitulates points of departure,the choices to be made, and the targets to be achieved.

The report presents final conclusions regarding the feasibility of thedifferent elements of the plan. Several developments in Pakistan indicate agrowing interest in traffic and traffic safety amongst both politicians and thegeneral public. The ambition of the plan hopefully reflects the ambition ofvarious officials to deal effectively with problems of traffic safety in Lahore.


Contents

List of abbreviations 7

Explanation of vehicle types 8

Basic traffic concepts 9

Foreword 11

Acknowledgment 12

1. Introduction 131.1. Contents of the chapter 131.2. The Lahore Urban Transport Project 131.3. Scope of the current project 141.4. Overview of the report 14

2. The road safety problem 162.1. Contents of the chapter 162.2. Traffic safety in Pakistan and Lahore 162.3. Traffic problems in Lahore: the engineering perspective 192.4. Traffic problems in Lahore: enforcement and traffic police

operations 202.5. Traffic problems in Lahore: the education perspective 222.6. Traffic problems in Lahore: organizations involved in traffic safety 242.7. Traffic problems in Lahore: the legislative framework 26

3. The road safety strategy 293.1. Contents of the chapter 293.2. Steering committee responsible for road safety policy 293.3. Legislation adapted to present day conditions 303.4. Professional enforcement of traffic rules under good supportive

conditions 313.5. Engineering based on clear standards and attuned to the safety

needs of non-motorized traffic modes 333.6. Traffic education of children and the general public 343.7. Integrated system of driver training, testing and licensing 353.8. Well-organized traffic management 36

4. The road safety plan 384.1. Contents of the chapter 384.2. The road safety plan 384.3. Clarifications and specifications 414.4. Overview of recommendations 43

5. The implementation plan 475.1. Contents of the chapter 475.2. General introduction 475.3. Institutional strengthening measures 505.4. Establishment of the steering committee 52


5.5. Preparation of the demonstration project 555.5.1. The demonstration area 565.5.2. Training of police 565.5.3. Conditions for non-corrupt and authoritative enforcement 57

5.6. Unified standards 625.7. Establishment of road safety audit 655.8. The construction of a police training institute 655.9. A traffic command post 665.10. Road safety campaigns 67

6. Conclusions 69

7. Literature and documents 71

8. Background studies 768.1. Analyses of traffic in Pakistan and Lahore 768.2. Review of safety initiatives and legislation 848.3. Main stakeholders in the field of road safety 898.4. Organization and functioning of the Traffic Police 948.5. Status of accident reporting 998.6. Licensing 1018.7. Provisional blueprint for an integrated system of licensing and

driver training 1028.8. Report of the 17th April 1999 workshop 1098.9. Report of the 7th May Seminar 122


List of abbreviations

ADB Asian Development Bank

DIG Deputy Inspector General

LDA Lahore Development Authority

MCL Metropolitan Corporation Lahore

MVO Motor Vehicle Ordinance

MVR Motor Vehicle Rule

MW&C Ministry of Works and Communication

NGO Non Government Organization

NHA National Highways Authority

NTRC National Transport Research Council

PSV Public Service Vehicle

TEPA Traffic Engineering and Planning Agency

WAPDA Water and Power Development Authority

WASA Water and Sanitation Agency


Explanation of vehicle types

Bus 62-seater/52-seater/42-seater

Challan Ticket against traffic violation to be handled by court

Mini bus 29-seater

Motor rickshaw motorized three wheeler with 2 seats excluding driver

Motorcycle rickshaw combination of motorcycle and rickshaw-body (not legallyregulated by technical fitness certificate)

Pick-up mini truck with open body for transportation of commercial goods

Rehra push/pull cart

Tonga horse-driven 6-seater

Wagon 14 seater (commuter van)


Basic traffic concepts

Accident rate Number of accidents that have occurred over a given period of time,divided by the value of another variable selected in view of the questionraised (km of roads, km driven, population, number of vehicles on theroads, etc.). Accident rates are mostly used for comparisons betweendifferent geographical areas or periods of time.

Casualty Any person who has got injuries in road accident (minor .. fatal).

Dual carriageway Road designed with two one-way carriageways (in opposite directions)separated by a median or a central reservation.

Fatal accident Road accident in which at least one person died as a result of thecollision within a defined period of time. The period of time is normally ofthirty days, according to WHO recommendations.

Fatality A dead person, perished in a road accident within 30 days after it due tothe consequences of the accident.

FIR First Investigation Report of the Police. Currently the only accident “dataform” which is to be filled in by the Police.

Highway code Set of laws or regulations designed to organize and control the use ofthe public road network and of vehicles, and to ensure safety on thenetwork.

Road constructionThe improvement of remodelling of existing roads or the development ofroads in newly developing areas.

Road designThis encompasses the design of the layout of the various components ofthe road (carriageway widths, median, footpaths, traffic islands, roadsigns) and their interrelationships as well as the design of the pavement(the actual physical constituents of the road).

Road maintenanceThe routine, accidental or periodic repairs to various components of theroads, including pavement, footpath, drainage, markings, signs, andtraffic control devices.


Road operation and maintenanceThe upkeep of the road for the use of the public, including repairs totraffic light installations and routine, periodic or accidental repairs ormaintenance to markings, signs, signals etc.

Road reconstruction or road rehabilitationThe effort to return the road to the original level.

Road beautificationImproving the roadside through landscaping and refurbishment ofroadside furniture.

Road planningPlan for the routing and global layout of a road ensuring the capability ofthe road to provide road facilities in accordance with the mobility needsof the area.


Foreword

In commission by the World Bank, the Dutch SWOV Institute for RoadSafety Research, together with the Dutch ITC Institute for Traffic Care,undertook a study to prepare and write a road safety plan for the city ofLahore as part of the Lahore Urban Transport Project. This report describesthe outcomes of that study and presents a road safety plan for the city ofLahore.

In the period 2nd March-9th May 1999 the study was conducted in the cityof Lahore where several interviews with stakeholders were done, eventuallyresulting in two collective meetings: a workshop on road safety on 17th April1999 and a seminar on road safety on 7th May 1999.

The project was commissioned by the World Bank. Mr. Amer Durrani andMr. Nawaid Qureshi (project leader) from the World Bank prepared andsupervised the project activities.

Mr. Peter ter Meulen, Director of the Institute for Traffic Care, has to a largeextent contributed to the road safety plan as presented in Chapter 3 of thereport. The Traffic Police Lahore strongly supported the various projectactivities. They contributed to a large extent to the organization of the roadsafety workshop and seminar in Lahore.


Acknowledgment

In the course of this project many persons in Lahore and Islamabad offeredhospitality, assistance and advice in ways that exceeded their professionalduties. In this place we want to express our gratitude to the followingpersons:

- Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja, DIG/Director Welfare, Punjab, Lahore.- Mr. Altaf Qamar, Dy:Inspector General of Police, Traffic, Punjab,

Lahore.- Mr. Javed Zaman Khan, Chairman Traffic Task Force, Lahore.- Mr. Ghalib A. Bandesha, SSP, Traffic Hqrs, Lahore.- Mr. Ghulam Abbas, Chief Transport Planner, Government of the Punjab,

Transport Department, Lahore.- Mr. Khushal Khan, Consultant, Lahore.- Mr. S.M. Shafique, Director, R & R , Special Branch, Lahore.- Mr. Malik Abdul Aziz, Superintendent of Police, Traffic, Lahore.- Mr. Tom Granberg, Finnroad, Islamabad.- Mr. Jens Haddeland, Finnroad, Islamabad.- Mr Haseeb Athar, Secretary, LUTP, Lahore.- Mr. Pervaiz Kandhari, DSP/SO, Traffic Hqrs, Lahore.- Mr. Malik Muhammad Azhar, ADIG, Punjab, Lahore.- Mr. Zulfiqar Ahmad, DSP ,Traffic, Lahore.- Mr. Tariq Azeem Khan, PSO to Chairman, Traffic Task Force, Lahore.- Mr. Mehmood-ul-Hassan Gilani, Inspector Traffic, Lahore.- Ch. Muhammad Anwar Zahoor, Gen. Secretary Road Transport Workers

Federation of Pakistan, Lahore.- Ch. Muhammad Hayat, Gen. Secretary of The Pakistan Motor Transport

Federation, Lahore.- Mr. Sardar Humayun Khan, representative of ARUP, Lahore.- Mr. Fuad Hameed Rai, Training Manager, NGO HELP, Lahore.

We are much indebted to our colleague Stephen Harris who improved theEnglish language of the report.

Finally, we would also like to extend our thanks to the firm of MottMcDonald which has freely offered much needed office facilities in supportof the present project.


1. Introduction

1.1. Contents of the chapter

This report describes a road safety strategy and plan for Lahore that is apart of a wider project, the Lahore Urban Transport Project (LUTP). Theobjective of LUTP is the sustainable improvement of Lahore’s urbantransport infrastructure and services so that they meet the needs of thecity’s growing population and of its commerce and industry. This requiresimplementing a framework where the public sector provides (a) theregulatory environment needed for a better quality private sector transportservices and (b) an efficient road network.

In section 1.2. we briefly sketch the main components of the LUTP. Insection 1.3. we describe the scope of the present work. The plan of thereport is presented in section 1.4.

1.2. The Lahore Urban Transport Project

Basically, there are three major components in the Lahore Urban TransportProject:

1. The Public Transport Improvement ComponentUnder joint responsibility of the Department of Transport and LahoreDevelopment Agency (LDA), work will be done to improve bus routes andbring defective traffic signals into correct operation.

2. The Transport Infrastructure Maintenance ComponentThe Road Department of the Metropolitan Corporation Lahore will perform aroads rehabilitation program, including improvements to side walks anddrainage/sewerage.

3. The Traffic Management and Transport Infrastructure ExpansionComponent. Under responsibility of the Lahore Development Authority and the TrafficEngineering and Planning Authority, activities will be undertaken toconstruct grade separated & at-grade intersections, to upgrade the CentralBusiness District Area, and to work out development of roads.

The Government of the Punjab plans to implement a reform framework forensuring that improvements to urban transport services and infrastructure inLahore are sustainable. In this context, financial, institutional, legislative,and regulatory reforms are planned.

Lahore’s needs would indicate a proposed 5-7 year project of about US $170-200 million, with possible substantial financial assistance by the WorldBank.


1.3. Scope of the current project

The scope of the current project covers the following activities:- To review the road safety in the Lahore Metropolitan Area.- To review the adequacy of the institutional and legislative framework

(Traffic Code, police competences and traffic penalties) for provision ofroad safety.

- To review the existing traffic police operation in LMA and training andperipheral activities such as driver licensing, vehicle inspection,procedures for ticketing and fines.

- To identify government and non-government organizations presentlyinvolved in traffic safety matters in Lahore Metropolitan Area.

- To recommend an institutional structure for coordinating the traffic safetysectors at the city level.

- To meet with stakeholders to discuss traffic safety issues and make apreliminary assessment of the level of safety awareness.

- To review on-going traffic safety initiatives.- To update the status of accident data collection.- To organize a Traffic Safety Seminar bringing together the various

stakeholders and produce a consensus on a draft Traffic Safety Strategy

Most of these activities were performed in the period 25th March-8th May1999 on location in Lahore. After an initial round of interviews with mainstakeholders, a workshop on road safety was organized on 17th April 1999.This workshop and a subsequent round of interviews with stakeholdersresulted in a road safety plan that was proposed and discussed in a seminaron road safety on 7th May 1999 in Lahore.

The aforementioned activities have lead to three final products:1. A draft traffic safety strategy for Lahore Metropolitan Area discussed

with key stakeholders.

2. A multi-year traffic safety plan for Lahore Metropolitan Area with aprioritization of the most consequential traffic safety improvements andrelated institutional strengthening measures for implementation duringLUTP.

3. An implementation plan and Terms of Reference for preparation andimplementation of these prioritized traffic safety improvements andrelated institutional strengthening measures for inclusion in the LUTP.

1.4. Overview of the report

In chapters 2 to 5 we directly focus on the crux of the matter and present anoverview of the problems (chapter 2), the proposed road safety strategy(chapter 3), the road safety plan (chapter 4), and the implementation plan(chapter 5).

The activities, studies, and reviews on which these plans are based arelisted in the studied literature (7) and the background studies in sections 8.1to 8.9. The topics of the different background studies are:- Road safety (8.1).- Review of legislation (8.2).- Review of safety initiatives (8.2).


- Stakeholders (8.3).- Structure and functioning of police (8.4).- Status of accident reporting (8.5).- Licensing (8.6).- Blueprint for an integrated system of driver training, testing and licensing

(8.7).- Results of the road safety workshop (8.8).- Results of the road safety seminar (8.9).


2. The road safety problem


In this chapter we analyse the road safety problem of the LahoreMetropolitan Area. First we look into the quantitative side of the problem oftraffic and traffic safety in Pakistan and Lahore (Section 2.2.). In thesections 2.3. to 2.5 we will discuss the problems of traffic and traffic safetyin Lahore in relation to the different fields of engineering, enforcement, andeducation.

Engineering refers to all physical changes to vehicle, road, road side, orroad environment. Enforcement of traffic rules refers to all activities by thepolice aimed at deterring road users from committing traffic violations.Road safety education encompasses all activities of teachers, educators,and publicity agents to inform, advise, teach, or instruct road users. Thethree main forms of road safety education are: target group publicity,classroom instruction, and driver instruction.

The institutional and legislative dimension of the traffic problems isdiscussed in sections 2.6 and 2.7.

In preparing the strategy and plan, we have profited from the rich sources ofknowledge contained in analyses of traffic and traffic problems by:- Haddeland and Granberg (1999)- Finnroad (1998a, b).- Khushal Khan (1999).- Ross (1991).- Shafique (1994, 1999).- The steering committee of traffic management in the Punjab (1998).

As much as possible we have mentioned the various sources we haveused. However, part of the information in this report is based on (informal)interviews for which no explicit references are given.

2.2. Traffic safety in Pakistan and Lahore

PakistanOver 7000 persons die in road accidents in Pakistan every year. Tens ofthousands meet with injuries sustained in traffic every year. The loss to thenational economy is over US $ 1 billion. The accident rate in Pakistan(number of fatalities per 10.000 vehicles) is about 30 (Haddeland &Granberg, 1999; provincial training seminar 2).

If the current trend in road safety is not checked by countermeasures, thepredictions sketch a bleak picture: in the year 2010 there will be around14.000 traffic fatalities (40 traffic fatalities per day) and about 700.000accidents resulting in a total economic loss for that year of US $ 2,5 Billion(Haddeland & Granberg, 1999; provincial training seminar 2). Furthermore,some experts have pointed out that a negative road safety development inPakistan will likely put a slur upon it’s tourist image as a safe country.


Figure 2.1. Vehicles involved in accidents Lahore (Source: Traffic Police)

LahoreThe general traffic scenes and traffic behaviour in Lahore are described inbackground study 8.1. In this section we present a description of main roadsafety statistics. Our analysis has to be limited since information aboutexact accident locations, manoeuvres of vehicles involved, and accidentcollision types was not available in computerized format. Given the timeframe of the present study and the language barrier, it was not possible tostudy the raw data in the original police reports.

Annually about 50% of the traffic fatalities in Lahore are vulnerable roadusers. Pedestrians constitute the largest proportion of traffic fatalities (25-30%) , followed by cyclists (about 10%) and motorcyclists (about 8%).Information about the exact location of accidents or the manoeuvresinvolved is lacking.

Figure 2.1 presents the types of vehicles involved in accidents in periods1989-1993 and 1994-1998.

As can be seen in Figure 2.1, in over 70% of the accidents in Lahore acommercial vehicle type is involved. Car-taxis, wagons, trucks, and buses


Figure 2.2. Registered traffic fatalities and casualties in Lahore in 1989-1998

are most frequently involved in accidents. Over time, the frequency ofinvolvement of buses, minibuses, and flying coaches has considerablyincreased.

The traffic fatality rate in Lahore (the number of traffic fatalities per 10.000registered vehicles) has decreased from 28 per 10.000 vehicles in 1979 toless than 4 per 10.000 vehicles in 1999. Compared to the 30 per 10.000vehicles rate for the whole of Pakistan, the safety situation in Lahore seemsfavourable. However, the positive development in the traffic fatality rate ismainly due to the very strong growth of the vehicle fleet in Lahore; fromonly about 200.000 in the 1989 to over 900.000 in 1999.

In absolute numbers, the road safety situation in Lahore is not improvingbut worsening (Figure 2.2). There has been a clear rise in traffic fatalitiesover the past ten years. In the period 89-93, 866 road user's died in Lahoretraffic; in the subsequent 5-year period 94-98 this number has risen to 1349,an increase over 50%. For the next five year period, 99-03, traffic fatalitiesin Lahore area may already rise to over 2000 if no countermeasures aretaken.

Conclusion:Compared to other large Asian cities, the road safety situation in Lahore isat the moment not particularly bad. However, the current road safetysituation is not stable and will deteriorate fast without adequate counter-measures. It is to be expected that due to the growth of motorization andpopulation, the total traffic fatalities may almost double in the next five


years. In the light of this expected development, care should be given toimplement an active road safety policy that will contain unsafety withinacceptable bounds.

2.3. Traffic problems in Lahore: the engineering perspective

Short assessment of current situation (see also background study 8.3):From the engineering point of view, the sources of poor road safety on theroad network of the Lahore Metropolitan Area can be analysed according tothe four stages of Planning (1), Design (2), Construction (3) and Operationand maintenance (4).

(1) Infrastructure and road planningThere exists a detailed Transportation Plan for Lahore City prepared byTEPA with the assistance of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)and TEPA has tried to follow the plan in letter and spirit in the past. Nevertheless, recent road works by different organizations have totally differentpriorities and different level of service. Requirements of major road usergroups, i.e. cyclists and users of public transport, are to a large extentignored.

(2) Road DesignRoad works carried out by TEPA, through different programmes funded bythe World Bank and Provincial and Federal Government, do cover allnecessary elements of traffic engineering and traffic management. Thereseem to be considerable improvements on various road sections andjunctions in central parts of the city. However, there are problems on roadsthat are controlled by other departments.

Newly constructed roads have good quality road pavements, but the roadlayouts and junction geometry do not conform to any acceptable standard.Footpaths and facilities for bus service are missing. The placement ofcrossing viz. access control is unbalanced. No consideration has beengiven with regard to application of standards. In fact there is a variety ofstandards which have been applied. Junctions are kept wide open, with littleregard to effective traffic control. Service roads having no access to themain carriage way; the links have been left open right into the roadcrossing. The result of this is that junctions are confusing and that manyunnecessary and potentially dangerous traffic movements are created onthe junction itself. To make matters worse, the signal layouts on suchcrossings are non-standardised and signals seldom work.

The placement of many signs and road markings is non-functional,particularly at crossings. Exceptions to this are the carriageway marking onlinks. Stop lines sometimes are missing and in some cases not properlyplaced. Zebra crossings do not lead to footpaths and are mostly in someway obstructed by barriers placed by the Horticulture and Parks Authority orintruded by street light poles or other fixed roadside objects.

The traffic control on almost all crossings is manually done by the TrafficPolice. In the absence of the Traffic Police, the danger on these crossingsincreases.


(3) Road constructionSafety standards at construction sites are almost non existent in everyproject. Tenders for construction works do not specifically guarantee thesafety measures for diversion of traffic or placement of warning signs onapproaching routes to the construction site. For instance, there was not asingle sign posted for the large underpass project of LDA in Lahore. On theapproach road to the Motorway there is only a solid wall built across theroad, which is extremely dangerous during night time. Similar deficienciescan be observed on other road works in the city. For instance, a heap of soildumped on the road surface is used as the indicator for traffic diversion ona prestigious multi-billion rupees project.

(4) Road maintenanceThe standard of road maintenance is extremely poor. Every organization,for reasons well-understood, takes pride in prestigious construction orreconstruction projects; but non pays any attention to the routine (oftensmall) maintenance requirements. The Lahore Metropolitan Corporation,which is primarily responsible for the operation and maintenance throughoutits area, seems now more inclined towards new works rather thanmaintenance. Potholes on major roads, non-functional traffic signals,broken edges, non-existence of road markings, indicate the efficiency of theresponsible agencies. The road hazards in the Lahore Metropolis is stronglypresent during the monsoon when most of the roads are submerged inknee-deep water and drivers cannot see the potholes. Finally, the use ofroad reflectors of excessive height as lane dividers is a source of danger fortwo-wheelers.

Conclusions:The overriding considerations in the process from planning to design toconstruction or reconstruction of roads are almost exclusively demand andcapacity for motorized traffic. The main target in planning is to ensuresmooth flow of motorized traffic, with little or no consideration to facilities forpedestrians or cyclists.

There are no unified standards for road-layout, road reconstruction, roadmaintenance or road environment in the city of Lahore; the logical resultbeing that different standards (American, French, British, Australian etc.)are being used.

Unified standards for road construction, operation and maintenance shouldbe agreed upon by the various organizations in the field, be written down ina clear manual, and be made mandatory for use in future road projects.

Road Safety Audits (i.e. critical review of safety consequences of proposalsand plans by qualified expert team) should be routinely done as part ofevery new road project right from the start of the project.

2.4. Traffic problems in Lahore: enforcement and traffic police operations

Short assessment of current situation (see also background study 8.4)Forty to sixty percent of the time of traffic police is devoted to VVIP escortduty. Legally, this is the task of traffic police. Since Lahore, as the culturalcentre of the Punjab, houses many VVIP’s, the proportion of time spent for


this activity is very large and sharply limits the time of the traffic police forother traffic duties, such as enforcement.

Traffic police enforce traffic rules whenever traffic management duties is ata low tide and there is some time left for enforcement. Police enforcementof traffic rules is not supported by publicity. The Police have no equipmentfor enforcement of speeding. The constables and head constables makingup the majority of the police force, have little power to stop motorized offen-ders. Common constables have no legal authority to issue tickets orchallans. Political pressure from transport unions is put on the traffic policeto detain from enforcing certain categories of violations or categories ofroad users.

In Lahore police enforcement of specific traffic rules (e.g. lane keeping,parking, stopping for intersections) is strongly impaired by a lack of correctroad lay-out. Obviously a police officer cannot enforce traffic rules in theabsence of any signs, markings, or signals that indicate the rule.

The enforcement activities of the traffic police are not guided by informationabout accidents or accident causes. In the present system of accidentregistration, information about the exact locations of accidents is notavailable in a computerized database. In practice Motor Vehicle Examinersare often not present at the scene of the accident to investigate vehiclefactors. Furthermore, there is considerable reluctance among the generalpublic to act as witnesses in an accident investigation. The lack ofinformation about accident locations and contributory factor make itimpossible to direct enforcement selectively towards those locations orthose behaviours which present the greatest hazard.

In the field of accident registration or analysis, the traffic police do not getany support or guidance from the road authorities. The road authoritieshave no formal responsibility with regard to safety monitoring and they donot collect or analyse accident statistics pertaining to the roads under theirsupervision

The legislative conditions that enable police enforcement to be effective arefar from ideal. At present, pedestrians and cyclists are not legally culpablefor traffic violations. The size of fines for traffic violations is very low datingfrom the 19th century, and has not in anyway been adjusted for monetaryinflation. The traditional challan system based upon present legislationtakes up too much time of the courts, and the delay between traffic andactual punishment decided in the court, is too long. Legislation shouldcreate room for the substitution of part of the challan system (processing bythe courts) by the much more efficient ticketing system (processing with nocourt interference); see background study 8.2. Clearly, an improvement intraffic legislation is needed to make police enforcement more effective.

Certain types of corruption of police officers in the field undermines citizenrespect for police actions. It's the nature of the corruption rather than theabsolute amount of corruption that determines how police will be perceivedby the general public (e.g. Swati, 1980). If traffic constables extort moneyfor non-violations or small, non-dangerous traffic violations, their action willbe perceived as purely monetary. If traffic constables extort money fromoffenders who have in fact committed a serious traffic offence, the actions


of the traffic police will be seen in a more positive light, even though theelement of corruption is still present.

It should be clearly stated at this point that police corruption is not unique toLahore or Pakistan, but is a general phenomenon in developing countries inAsia, Africa and Latin America.

ConclusionThe different support systems that enable police enforcement to be effectivein changing traffic behaviour (clear infrastructure, modern legislation,information about accident locations, access to centralized vehicle, andlicense registration) are not yet present or fully operational. Thesesupportive systems should exist or be put into operation in order tomaximize the effects of enforcement on behaviour on the road.

2.5. Traffic problems in Lahore: the education perspective

Short assessment of the current situation:Although there is a strong belief in the beneficial effects of educationthroughout Pakistan, the attitude towards introducing specific trafficeducation on primary and secondary schools is mixed. Sources high in theDepartment of Education express their doubt as to the possible effective-ness of such education. School principals themselves complain about filledcurricula and about absence of relevant teaching materials. In practice,almost no traffic education is given to school children in Pakistan or inLahore.

In practice, there is no formal training for bus or truck drivers who appear tobe over-involved in traffic accidents in Pakistan. The only education mostdrivers in Lahore receive is during the actual theoretical and driving test,and the Pakistan Highway Code they receive together with the license.However, many professional drivers are illiterate and cannot read theHighway Code.

Mass publicity road safety campaigns using various media (television,radio, newspaper) have been scarce and were mainly focussed on specificprestigious projects, such as correct driving on the recently establishedLahore-Islamabad motorway.

Research in Pakistan into knowledge of adult drivers and training ofprofessional drivers show important results relevant for the education field.We will briefly describe these results.

(1) Traffic knowledge among adult driversIn 1978-1979 a questionnaire study was held amongst drivers in Pakistan,Jamaica, and Thailand. The questions pertained to knowledge of trafficrules and correct driving procedures. In this study it was found that:- many of the drivers in Pakistan (47%) were unsure about what colour of

light followed the amber signal,- only one fifth of drivers in Pakistan realized that stopping distance of

speed of 30miles/hour is more than 10 metres,- one fifth of drivers in Pakistan said they would only need to check ahead

before overtaking,


- one-fifth of the Pakistan (incorrectly) indicated that it was permissible toovertake on both the left and the right on a three-lane carriageway.

In the study it was found that drivers who had read the Highway Code weremore likely to give correct answers to questions on pedestrians, junctionsand vehicle lights.

In general the authors concluded: "The answers provided by drivers inPakistan, Jamaica, and Thailand to questions on driving indicated that therewere gaps in their knowledge of traffic rules and driving procedures but onlyin a few topics was there a widespread lack of knowledge amongst thedrivers interviewed." (Sayer and Downing, 1981; p. 14).

(2) Training of professional driversIn 1982 research was done into the effects of a retraining programme forbus drivers (Downing, 1988). The Government of Pakistan introduced aretraining programme for bus drivers of a major urban operator in theRawalpindi and Islamabad area. Up to ten drivers at a time were sent to acourse, each of which lasted for six days, with the last day being devotedentirely to practical and theory driving tests. Between 30 and 40 courseswere completed every year, so that by the end of 1984, 77 percent of thebus drivers in the area had been retrained and 68 percent had passed thetest.

The retraining brought about an improvement in drivers' knowledge and areduction in their driving errors when they were tested. However thereduction of driving errors was much less when the drivers were observedunobtrusively under normal operating conditions. Therefore retraining on itsown was insufficient to improve everyday driving standards. It wasconcluded that the drivers were insufficiently motivated to change theirnormal driving patterns. Therefore it would appear that retraining needs tobe accompanied by enforcement and/or incentive schemes to encouragedrivers to adopt the recommended driving practices and procedures. Theretrained drivers may also have been reluctant to change their behaviourbecause it would have resulted in some of their actions appearing to differfrom those of the majority of other road users.

What we can learn from research is that driver training on its own is notenough to change the behaviour of professional drivers. Therefore, theeffects of driver training should be supported by other measures in the fieldof licensing, driver testing, enforcement, career planning etc. It is the totalsystem of social and economical conditions under which professionaldrivers have to work that shapes their behaviour into the safe or unsafedirection. All the elements – training, testing, licensing, retraining, specialcertificates, point system, career opportunities - should contribute towardsmaking the behaviour safer. In background study 8.7 we offer a provisionalblueprint for a plan of integrated driver training, testing, and licensing forprofessional drivers.

Conclusion: Driver education is a necessary measure to increase traffic knowledge andtraffic discipline amongst road users. Of course, the effects of traffic education of young children and teenagers can only be seen on the long term.Based on research it is expected that driver training on its own will likely


have little or no effects on behaviour if it is not accompanied by othermeasures in the field of driver testing, licensing, and enforcement.

2.6. Traffic problems in Lahore: organizations involved in traffic safety

In background study 8.3. a review of separate organizations is given. In thissection we present the main findings.

Responsibility structureIt has been observed in various consultancy papers about the trafficsituation in Lahore (e.g. Ross, 1990; LDA Metropolitan Planning Wing,1980) that responsibilities for roads and road safety are scattered amongmany institutions and also change over time, e.g.: “A large number ofgovernment agencies are involved in the administration and control oftraffic and transport in Lahore. Little overall co-ordination is evidentbetween these bodies, and their respective responsibilities and functionsare ill-defined.” (LDA/ MPW, 1980; p. 65).

FundingIn the absence of a clear long term traffic policy funding of road projectsitself becomes rather haphazard. From an in-depth study in 1980 into theorganizational framework for traffic and traffic safety, we cite the followingconclusions that still seem valid today: "There is no comprehensive trafficpolicy to steer the allocation of available financial resources. There is nosteady budget for the traffic sector, to indicate the resources for some yearsahead, and to make meaningful medium term implementation planningpossible. When large allocations are made, they tend to be for specificschemes, rather than contributing to the kinds of institutional developmentnecessary for a sustained improvement program. There is no authorityresponsible for the coordinated allocation of money to the different parts ofthe traffic and transportation sector." (VTS, 1987b; p. 25)

Status of accident reportingIn several interviews in this study, road authorities have definitelyexpressed a lack of concern for road safety statistics (see also backgroundstudy 8.3 and 8.5). None of the road authorities (LDA/TEPA or MCL orPunjab Highway Authority) are presently monitoring the accidents on theroads which they have planned, designed, built, reconstructed, orrehabilitated.

The arguments given were that the statistics were incomplete en did notallow exact location of accidents. Furthermore, road authorities seemed toimply that accident registration was the main responsibility of the police,with no active role for the authorities themselves. Not surprisingly, none ofthe present road authorities in Lahore has a separate road safety unit ordepartment that is assigned active responsibility for road safety.

The responsibility for accident reporting is presently shared betweengeneral and traffic police. When a road accident occurs a First IncidentReport (FIR) is made up which gives basic information on the incident. ThisFIR form is a standard Police report form used for all incidents reported tothe police, whether they involve crime, accidents, or other incidents. It canbe understood from this that the FIR form is quite general and does not


contain the types of detailed information collected at accident sites in othercountries.

From a scientific point of view the accident registration in Lahore - like inmany other Asian cities - has several shortcomings:- The exact location of accident is determined on the FIR, but not made

accessible for overall statistics.- Large under-registration of all non-fatal accidents.- One-sided, biased reporting of accidents in order to satisfy the needs of

the courts for a clear assignment of blame to one of the parties. Moreover, only part of the accident information is available incomputerized form and thus available for analysis.

No road safety departmentsThe lack of attention of road authorities for accident data can be understoodif we realize that authorities have no separate task functions or departmentsthat have a clear task description in terms of road safety. In the past trafficconsultants have addressed this state of affairs. For example, in 1990, Rossrecommended that TEPA should establish a small full time Road SafetyUnit (RSU) with a designated staff to be responsible for TEPA road safetyactivities. The proposed RSU should have consisted of two road or trafficengineers and two or three technicians, and was also to function as thesecretariat to a Lahore Road safety Committee to follow up, coordinate, andimplement the decisions of the committee. However, this recommendationwas not put into effect. In more recent years, consultants from Finnroadhave also recommended special organisational units for implementing roadsafety measures and policies at the provincial level.

BureaucratizationSome employees of road authority, voicing their personal opinion ratherthan department policy, deplore the bureaucratisation and politicizing of thedecision-making process about road design plans. Nowadays it is commonin Lahore that decisions about road infrastructure follow a political agendarather than survey-based analysis of the problem. Thus, political decisionsmay sabotage decisions based on sound engineering design. This fact hasbeen confirmed by several sources at different meetings.

Given these findings it seems advisable to bring various road authoritiesunder central management with a separate department for safety issues. Tobe clear, such an organization should be responsible for more than just"engineering" issues but overall transportation planning, coordination, andpolicy. As an example, the Government of Bangladesh has recentlyestablished the Greater Dhaka Transport Planning and Coordination Board(GDTPCB), which is led by an Executive Director with the same authority asa Permanent Secretary in Government. A similar arrangement could beestablished in Lahore. This arrangement is clearly for the long term. For theshort term (the next five years) it seems advisable to form a road safetycommittee that can bring about more coherence in the initiatives of variousstakeholders, and that can set a clear course in the interest of road safety.As we will argue later on in chapter 5, a steering committee for road safetyin Lahore, provided with sufficient authority and resources, is pivotal inimproving road safety.


Level of problem awarenessThere is a sharp awareness among stakeholders of the traffic problems inLahore. The problem-analyses of traffic in the Punjab and Lahore (severalreports by TEPA; Committee on Traffic Management in Punjab, 1998;Shafique, 1994) show insight and the recommendations certainly pointtowards promising directions. From a road safety point of view, the analysesare not quite satisfactory. Part of the monitoring of traffic that is particularlyrelevant for road safety, the reliable registration of accidents, receives scantor no attention. In short, analysis of the problems based on reliable data isscarce. This could originate from an old problem-solving tradition ofPakistan culture where high-level talks about a problem are consideredmore relevant to problem-analysis than sheets of research data and figures.However, the traditional modes of dispute settlement and political decision-making can be improved by paying more attention to the collection andanalysis of accident and research data.

Conclusions: The issues of traffic safety and traffic management tend to be placed on theshoulders of only one organization: the Traffic Police of Lahore.Undoubtedly this organization is responsible for traffic and traffic safety inLahore. But the responsibility should be shared with road authorities whoshould be more active in both road safety monitoring and development ofroad safety measures.

2.7. Traffic problems in Lahore: the legislative framework

Essentially, traffic rules are prescriptions given by the government to directthe behaviour of road users, with the additional power to force penalties onroad users who violate these rules. In Pakistan, legislation with regard toroad safety stems back from the colonial time. The Highway Code, whichhas a legal status in Pakistan as opposed to a mere advisory status in someother countries, is from 1977.

In Pakistan the legal rules for traffic are laid down in four basic documents: - The Motor Vehicles Ordinance 1965.- The West Pakistan Motor Vehicles Rules 1969.- The Pakistan Highway Code.- Special Ordinances by the Prime Minister.Most of the regulations are described in the Manual of Motor Vehicles Laws.

Given the old tradition of the legislation (sometimes dating back to thenineteenth century) and the changes in modern traffic and trafficenforcement, there is much to be said for introducing a new road safety actwhich is better attuned to the demands of the road system and to modernday traffic policing operations. Initiatives in this direction are already underway. In his briefing on traffic problems to the Chief Minister of the Punjab,the DIG/ Traffic Punjab recommended a new updated law for all road users.Part of the shortcoming of the Motor Vehicles Act 1965 (MVA 65) areaddressed in the new draft Road Usage Bill 1998. In contrast to the MVA65, the Road Usage Bill also covers the regulations governing thebehaviours of pedestrians, cyclists, animal drawn vehicles, and animalherders.


The main improvements can be described in four categories (Backgroundstudy 8.2):- Coverage of all road users, including pedestrians and cyclists;- Better description of specific responsibilities of both police and road

authorities;- More sharply described administrative procedures in the fields of license

registration, public carrier's permits;- Penalties that are adjusted to modern day economics.

Challan system versus ticket systemEspecially relevant for the effectiveness of police enforcement is the substi-tution of the traditional challan system by a system of ticketing. There isclear evidence that the ticketing system is a more efficient way of handlingtraffic violations than the challan system. To be clear, substitution does notmean that the challan system is to be totally abolished. In the case of gravetraffic violations where a road user deliberately endangers the live ofanother road user, adjudication of law by the courts is indispensable.However, a large category of traffic violations are of a less serious nature,and these traffic violations can be dealt with more quickly and economicallyby the ticketing system.

In 1969, a legal provision for a ticket system was made. The West PakistanMotor Vehicles Amendment Ordinance 1969 authorised a police officer notbelow the rank of an Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police, to charge on thespot any person committing, within his view, one of the following offences(mentioned in the Fifth Schedule of the West Pakistan Motor VehiclesOrdinance (Waqar-ul-Haq, 1998; p. 161).

The main features of the present ticket system (Section 116 MVO 1965)are:- Tickets of Rs. 10 (Scooter/Motor Cycle) and Rs. 20 (Car/Taxi)- The fine is to be deposited in a post office or a branch of the National

Bank of Pakistan within 7 days, or by money order under intimation tothe court of PS concerned

- Only from level of Assistant Sub Inspector and above are authorized toissue the ticket

Tickets may be given for 16 (minor) offences; driving without a license,under age driving and speeding are not included.

Compared to the traditional challan system, the ticket system in theory hasseveral advantages: - it is simple and speedy; - it saves court time; and - it reduces corruption since the fines are so low that bribery does not

seem worth the money.

However, as observed by the Committee on Traffic Management in thePunjab, the ticketing system has not worked to full benefit yet. Causes formalfunctioning were: - no seizure of documents; - Public Service Vehicles not covered by the system; - the meagre amount of the fine limits the deterrent effect; - the procedure of depositing the fine is needlessly cumbersome.


The following improvements to the ticketing system have beenrecommended by the Committee: - the ticketing system should cover violations of all road users;

pedestrians and cyclists included; - the tickets should be drawn up in quadruplicate in order to streamline

(central) administration; - the violator should pay the fine on the spot or if not, challenge the fine

and go to court or deposit the fine in a specified bank; - the fines should be higher (Rs. 50 and Rs. 100 for two-wheelers and Rs.

100 and Rs. 200 for four-wheelers); the schedule of offences for whichtickets may be issued should be revised.

Conclusion:The present traffic legislation in Pakistan is not adjusted to modernconditions of traffic. To enable better results of police enforcement, it isnecessary to largely replace the old challan system with a ticketing system.


3. The road safety strategy


In this chapter we present a 7-point road safety strategy for the City ofLahore. It is important to realize that there are already a number of plans forimprovement of the traffic situation in Lahore. This plan does not in any wayhinder or interfere with these plans. Rather it must be seen as acomplementary approach to the traffic problems in Lahore that will have aclear added value for road safety.

In the existing plans, important traffic issues, e.g. the separation of slow andfast moving traffic, already receive careful attention. Rather than justrepeating all the existing traffic policies we have limited our strategy tothose points which we consider to be of considerable surplus value to theexisting efforts for road safety in the period 2000-2005.

The beating heart of the present road safety strategy and road safety plan(described in the next chapter) is formed by a special highly-visible demon-stration project on 21 major road stretches in Lahore where professionaland intensified enforcement will bring back traffic discipline on the streets.Within 2 years this special demonstration project, an integrated mix of roadsafety measures (clear infrastructure, highly professional enforcement,publicity) applied to a central road network in Lahore, must show benefits insafety and road behaviour. If the project proves successful, the approachmay be expanded to a wider road network in Lahore.

The Road Safety Strategy is focussed on 7 points that can be and must berealized in the period 2000-2005:

1. A steering committee responsible for road safety policy.2. Legislation adapted to present day conditions.3. Non-corrupt and authoritative enforcement of traffic rules.4. Engineering based on clear standards and attuned to the safety needs of

non-motorized traffic modes.5. Traffic education of children and the general public.6. Integrated system of driver training, testing and licensing.7. Well-organized traffic management.

For each of these points we will briefly recapitulate our points of departure,the choices to be made, and the targets to be achieved.

3.2. Steering committee responsible for road safety policy

Point of departure:At present there is no shared responsibility amongst road authorities forroad safety. The burden of safety is placed solely on the shoulders of thetraffic police who do not have the necessary resources and support to bringabout any improvement in the traffic situation.


Choices and considerations:Since road safety is the outcome of activities in various sectors, theresponsibility should also be shared amongst these sectors. The sectorsshould coordinate their respective activities in a common road safety policy.The choice is whether we should allow this coordination to be a voluntaryprocess between organizations, or to be somehow steered by some sort ofcentral management. In the absence of a clearly formulated road safetypolicy at the provincial or national level, the best idea seems to be thelatter, i.e. to form a central steering body that can actively steer andencourage road safety activities at the city level.

Target to be achieved: For the period 2000-2005, a steering committee for road safety is the idealplatform for the coordination of the various activities of the stakeholders inthe Lahore Metropolitan Area.

The establishment of a special steering committee for road safety in theLahore Metropolitan Area is the first step in the Road Safety Plan (Chapter4). In the Implementation Plan (Chapter 5) specific suggestions are givenfor the tasks, powers, and requirements of this committee.

3.3. Legislation adapted to present day conditions

Points of departure:In Pakistan, legal rules for traffic are laid down in four basic documents:- The Motor Vehicles Ordinance 1965;- The West Pakistan Motor Vehicles Rules 1969;- The Pakistan Highway Code;- Special Ordinances by the Prime Minister.

Most of the regulations are described in the Manual of Motor Vehicles Laws(Waqar-ul-Haq, 1988).

Choices and considerations:The need for new legislation is clearly seen by stakeholders in the field.This is attested by the recent introduction of two new legislative initiatives:the National Highways Safety Ordinance (1997) and the Road Usage Bill(1988). Both proposals are addressing many of the shortcomings in the oldlegislation. At the moment, both of these proposals are awaiting for politicalapproval. The Road Usage bill has to be approved by the Province of thePunjab, while the National Highway Safety Ordinance has to pass nationalapproval in the senate. Thus, there seems to be one clear choice:legislative reform is necessary to give traffic police more authority to dealwith traffic offenders and to give government authorities better proceduresto deal with false licenses. If the National Highways Safety Ordinance andthe Road Usage Bill are not approved, then other legal ways should befound to seek legal implementation of the important elements of theseproposals.

Targets to be achieved:In several ways, present legislation needs to be improved. Among manyelements, the following elements are crucial for an enforcement strategy asenvisaged in this plan:


- Legal coverage of all road users, including pedestrians, cyclists, anddrivers of animal-driven carts;

- Penalties for traffic violations that are adjusted to modern dayeconomics;

- Extension of police authority to issue traffic tickets;- Better description of specific responsibilities of both police and road

authorities- More sharply described administrative procedures in the fields of driver

testing and licensing, vehicle and license registration, and publiccarriers’ permits.

3.4. Professional enforcement of traffic rules under good supportive conditions

Points of departure:As we have already mentioned, road safety is the result of convergence ofactivities in various sectors that support one another. This is certainly alsothe case for police enforcement.

To be effective police enforcement of traffic rules needs to be supported inseveral ways. Enforcement must be supported by publicity activities thatexplain the importance of the enforcement to the public. Educational andpublic information programmes can support acceptance of traffic laws in thefollowing ways (Williams, 1994). First, they may transfer knowledge aboutthe existence of laws, their provisions, and their penalties, in ways that increase their deterrent effect. Second, they may transfer substantive knowledge about the problem behaviour (e.g. speeding, red light negation) andits potential negative consequences (e.g. accident, punishment).

A second support system for police enforcement is a good analysis of theaccident data resulting in clear policy priorities. Accident data provides theobjective and scientific basis for determining, not only the extent and typeof safety problem experienced, but also the kinds of remedial measuresmost likely to be effective. “Without the collection of accident figures, thesafety of a nation's road network cannot be assessed and monitored.”(Asian Development Bank, 1998; p. 51). The general and traffic police arecertainly responsible for accident registration. But the responsibility for theanalysis of these accident data, and the translation of these data into aclear road safety policy, should be shared by the road authorities.

A third important support for police enforcement is legislative and judicialsupport. Police enforcement is one link in the total chain of traffic lawenforcement; the other links being the traffic laws, traffic penalties, and theprocessing of traffic cases by the courts. Police enforcement of traffic rulescannot be effective in changing behaviour of road users if penalties arevery low or if cases are not handled adequately and speedily by the courts(e.g. Goldenbeld, 1995). Upgrading of the fines and speedy processing offines (without interference from the courts) are important preconditions foreffective enforcement in Lahore.

Choices and considerations:On the one hand there is a clear need for professionalization of policeenforcement; on the other hand, we may expect that any attempt toprofessionalize police enforcement will be “plagued” by corruption within the


police force. In view of the corruption problem a certain political reluctanceto invest in resources of the traffic police can be understood.

It should be clear that without any further investment in organizationalresources of the traffic police, no improvement in enforcement of trafficlaws can be reasonably expected. This point has been made in severalpublications about this issue (e.g. VTS, 1987). If we decide to invest inresources of the traffic police, we are faced with the problem how we makesure that these investments are used to full benefit for police and public.

There is little doubt that professionalisation of the traffic police is the wayahead. The choice pertains to how we should go about it. Three pointsseem crucial for the whole operation. First, corruption of traffic policeofficers has to be eliminated. Second, the implementation of enforcementon major roads has to follow professional methods and make use of modernequipment. Third, the results of the enforcement have to be professionallyevaluated in order to establish success and to further improve workingprocedures.

As we argue in section 5.5.3. Government and police may agree oncontracts where investments by Government in police resources arecompensated for by a guaranteed output of tickets and challans.

Targets to be achieved:Working conditions for the police officers in the field have to change inorder to eliminate corruptive behaviours. Training and equipment is neededto professionalize police enforcement procedures in Lahore.

To make better use of available manpower, enforcement must be guided byan analysis of accident data indicating the type and severity of the problemsin different areas and on different road types.

Under joint responsibility of both traffic police and road authorities, seriouseffort must be spent on the task of setting up a system of road safetymonitoring that allows to pinpoint the unsafe locations and road stretches.A special Traffic Research Cell should be set up within the Traffic Policethat makes a more thorough accident investigation based on the FIR'smade up by the General Police. The main task of the Research Cell wouldbe to provide quick feedback to the Traffic Police and Road Authorities onthe exact location of the accidents and patterns of accidents which needfurther attention or even immediate measures.

Road authorities must be given formal responsibility to monitor safety onthe roads and to take into account safety information when planningchanges to the road system. The information gathered should at least coverthe following elements:- date of the accident;- time of the accident;- exact location of the accident; - persons killed or injured;- types of vehicles or road users involved.

Only after the level of reliability of this information is satisfactory, canfurther steps be taken to extend the accident recording.


Last but not least, computerization of the license and vehicle administrationand a 24-hour per day access to license and vehicle administration willimprove enforcement operations in several ways:- False licences will be more easily detected if the police officer can

communicate with a central licensing agency where the licenses are onfile.

- Computerization of the license administration makes it possible toelectronically mark the license instead of withdrawing the license fromthe owner on the street.

- Computerization of the license administration makes it possible toactually implement a ‘point system’ for traffic violations for which legalprovision is already there.

In the Road Safety Plan and the Implementation Plan in chapters 4 and 5,specific suggestions for these support systems (publicity, accident data,training, legislative adjustment) are made.

3.5. Engineering based on clear standards and attuned to the safety needs of non-motorized traffic modes

Point of departure:At present, road authorities use different sets of engineering standards forconstruction or reconstruction of roads in Lahore. Both old roads andrecently constructed roads show a lack of facilities for pedestrians andcyclists. The responsibilities for planning, development, construction andmaintenance of roads are scattered over many authorities and engineering/consultancy firms. They also shift over time between different authorities.Road authorities do not actively monitor accident data on the roads undertheir responsibility.

Choices and considerations:It has been suggested in several consultancy papers to bring the variousroad authorities under one central management. Such an operation may befruitful, but would require careful consideration of the internal organizationof each of the authorities. Moreover, such a reorganization would take someyears before it’s effects may be noticed. On the short term, within the nextfive years, there seem to be more promising direct ways of improving theengineering of road safety.

One direct initiative that could be implemented within a 2-year period is theintroduction of a road safety audit. Safety audit refers to the formal processof reviewing road projects, specifically to identify potential or existing safetyhazards, in order to allow for timely (pro)active correction, especially forpedestrian and other vulnerable road users. Their safety needs are oftenneglected in traditional transport planning and design (Asian DevelopmentBank, 1999; p. 53).

Introduction of a road safety audit procedure would ensure that safetyconsiderations are taken into account in the early phases of the decision-making process.


Targets to be achieved:Road authorities should agree on unified standards for planning and designof roads and road environment. These standards should be clearlydescribed and illustrated in English in a Standard Manual.

Road authorities should agree on a standard procedure for road safetyaudits. Part of the procedure should be that the road safety audit gives aninput from the very beginning of the planning and decision-making process.

3.6. Traffic education of children and the general public

Point of departure:Sadly, there is practically no teaching on traffic safety issues in the schoolsof Pakistan. The most common explanation for this absence of teaching is‘overcrowded curriculums’. In those few schools were traffic safety issuesare taught, this happens only when students (boys) are about the age toreach the legal age of driving (18 years).

Koivisto (1997) points out the lack of high-level interest in safety training forchildren. Some citations from his investigative report: “As far as thestatements of the representative of the Ministry of Education, Mr. Altaf AliQuereshi (Assistant Educational Adviser) are concerned, there are nospecial problems in the traffic safety of children - or if there happens to be,nothing can be done about it.” and: “It is ingrained in child’s nature to followhis instincts ... it is no use teaching the child to hold back and wait till theroad is clear” (Koivisto, 1997).

Choices and considerations:The problems of traffic safety of young school children are there. In thevicinity of schools in Lahore and other cities there are severe traffic jamsdue to the haphazard flow of traffic and parking particularly near theentrance gates at opening and closing times. It is usual that there arehundreds of cars waiting near the school for children. Indeed, parents preferto bring their children to school by car rather than sending them on foot orbicycle because of safety considerations.

Clearly, traffic education at primary and secondary schools is not beingtaken seriously enough by the Ministry of Education. Too much is left to thepraiseworthy initiative of the Lahore traffic police in this respect. Trafficeducation is a measure for the long run that will make the next generationof road users more responsible.

If we teach children about traffic and traffic rules at a young age, we aremaking a start towards a next generation of more responsible and moretraffic-aware road users. Traffic education is the best way to overcome the“free-for-all” mentality that is apparent in the present behaviour of manydrivers (background study 8.1). If we do not teach children anything abouttraffic, they will tend to make up their own informal rules and to imitatebehaviours of other road users that are in clear violation of rules.

Targets to be achieved:Traffic education should prepare children of various ages for participation intraffic. This can be done by training practical skills (1). At the same time,traffic education should also address important moral values, like concern


for the safety of others and taking responsibility for own safety and others’safety (2).

(1) Practical safety skillsThe most important teachings that will increase the traffic safety of schoolchildren are:- how to cross the road- where to cross the road- where to walk as a pedestrian- where to wait for a school bus- not playing near roads- the meaning of the most important traffic signs

Training of these skills in actual traffic conditions is superior in effectivenessthan training on a specially closed training ground (Asian DevelopmentBank, 1998).

(2) Responsibility taking as road userRoad safety education aims to prepare road users for safe and responsibleparticipation in traffic. In order to achieve this purpose, road safetyeducation should go beyond mere root learning of traffic rules, andstimulate road users to develop an active sense of responsibility for theirown safety as well as the safety of others (e.g. Goldenbeld, 1996). To thiseffect road safety education should enhance a social perspective on rule-following behaviour. A social perspective means that road users are madeaware of the explicit social nature of participating in traffic.

This social perspective on traffic should be stimulated using active learningmethods such as role playing, group work, and the exchange of experiencesthrough group discussion. For young children, playful teaching methods andmaterials should be devised. Ideally, road safety education should start at avery young age. As the young child develops into a mature man or woman,road safety education should go hand-in-hand with the developmentprocess and use different methods of instruction according to developmentstage.

3.7. Integrated system of driver training, testing and licensing

Points of departure:At present, candidate drivers in Pakistan and Lahore can easily slip throughthe “mazes”of the testing and licensing system. In practice, licences can bebought from the Traffic Police. The traffic police in some districts adhere tostrict legal procedures. However, the candidate drivers can easily travel to aneighbouring district where procedures regarding testing and licensing areless strict.

The importance of driver education and driver licensing for road safety inPakistan cannot be ignored, e.g.: "Driver education and control of drivinglicenses is the fastest way to improve knowledge among drivers. Today, thesystem is more or less an apprentice system: information, very often false,is spread from mouth to mouth, from older driver to younger etc. Safetymatters play no role in driver education. So, drivers' knowledge of driving ingeneral, and specifically of traffic rules, is weak." (Finnroad, 1997b; p 3/7).


Choices and considerations:Important initiatives towards restructuring the licensing and testing systemhave already been taken in the Road Usage Bill 1998 and the NationalHighway Safety Ordinance 1997. However, these legislative initiatives donot address all of the issues involved, e.g. the economical viability ofdriving school, cooperation between major stakeholders in support of thesystem, the practical implementation problems.

We should consider how we can restructure the testing and licensingsystem to improve the traffic behaviour of especially professional drivers,while at the same time we should not be throwing up “barriers” that arelikely to make the system unattractive to candidate professional drivers andtherefore unworkable. In our view, the system of driver training, testing, andlicensing cannot be “organized” solely by legislation. There are severalstakeholders in this particular field. Any plan to improve driver training,testing and licensing should preferably be based on an agreement betweenthese stakeholders.

Targets to be achieved:Training, testing, and licensing of drivers should be organized in oneintegrated system, agreed upon by major stakeholders in this area. Thesystem should meet the following requirements:- fair - agreed upon by major stakeholders involved - accessible to illiterate candidate drivers with potential good skill- economically viable- pre-select drivers with good potential for learning or to some extent

already well-skilled - able to train and test a considerable amount of drivers every year- able to monitor the safety record of these drivers áfter their training- able to take corrective measures in case of bad safety record- graduated in 2-3 year periods for different licenses for different vehicle

types- able to guarantee a high likelihood of passing the test and offering good

career incentives

In the Road Safety Plan, the establishment of a professional driving schoolin the Lahore area for both police and other professional drivers is one ofthe central aims. Furthermore, one of the main tasks of the SteeringCommittee for Road Safety is to work towards an integrated system ofdriver training, testing and licensing. In the limited time for the presentproject we were not able to bring about necessary negotiations for this aim,but we have come up with a provisional plan that, although imperfect indetails, may well be the starting document for real negotiations (Backgroundstudy 8.7). This provisional blueprint can clearly be improved upon.

3.8. Well-organized traffic management

Points of departure:The Traffic Police is to a large extent held responsible for trafficmanagement in Lahore. In fact, for almost 70-80% the manpower andresources of Traffic Police Lahore is spent on traffic management. Well-organized traffic management ensures a more smooth flow of traffic withbetter traffic discipline.


Choices and considerations:Obviously, if Traffic Police is held to a large extent responsible for trafficmanagement, it should also have professional instruments at its disposal toperform this task.

Currently, there are already efforts underway to repair traffic light installa-tions in Lahore and to built a command room for intersection light control. Itseems a logical choice to put such a command room under the formalcommand of the traffic police. Furthermore, it should also be seriouslyconsidered to put traffic police who have a daily, practical knowledge oftraffic management, in an advisory role in the planning of new road projectsin Lahore.

Targets to be achieved:Under authority of the Traffic Police Lahore, a Central Traffic Commandand Registration Centre should be set up in Lahore. The Centre shouldhave: 1. reliable communication lines with all the point officers2. reliable 'hot lines' to major institutions 3. link-up to traffic counts at toll-points4. link-up to intersection signalisation control5. professional mainframe UPS-supported computer facilities with link-ups

with vehicle registration, license registration, and - in future - with trafficcounts on major entree and exit intercity links. A GeographicalInformation System could, in principle, substantially improve andeconomize the performance of traffic management duties.

6. a central control room7. a cooled computer and printer room8. 4 to 8 offices9. possibility to give traffic messages to radio channels in order to inform

road users about possible traffic problems in the Lahore MetropolitanArea.

The Centre is multi-functional. It can perform the following functions:- More efficient management of traffic flows, based on best available

information;- Daily informing road users by radio about traffic jams or other problems;- More efficient procedures of victim transport to hospital;- More economical V.V.I.P. duty;- Data analysis of motor vehicles passing toll-points entering or exiting the

city.


4. The road safety plan


In this chapter a road safety plan for Lahore is presented. In section 4.2 wepresent the original plan that was discussed at a seminar on 7th May 1999where the main stakeholders were present. The full report of this seminar isgiven in background study 8.9.

On the basis of the comments received at the seminar we have made someadditions and improvements to the plan. In section 4.3 we briefly clarifysome of the issues raised in the discussion of the plan. Section 4.4 gives anoverview of recommendations per separate theme.

4.2. The road safety plan

The road safety plan for the city of Lahore which is presented in thissection, is indeed an ambitious plan. However, we are sharply aware thatthere are already many developments in Pakistan and in Lahore towardsthe directions proposed in our plan. The persons involved in the executionof the plan should try to stimulate these developments, to motivatestakeholders to work together, and to create a good working relationshipsand an open exchange of information. Of course, there are obstacles on theway and some targets of the plan may not be achieved fully or not beachieved within the time frame. Some parts of the plan clearly requireintensive discussions and negotiations between stakeholders. Other parts ofthe plan require quick action on the part of high level politicians.

Thus, there is no fool-proof guarantee that all the objectives can berealized. If 80% of the points mentioned in the plan could be realized within theperiod 2000-2005, this would constitute in our view a good performance ofall the persons involved in the execution of the plan. Indeed a 95 to 100%execution of all the points mentioned within the specified time frame wouldbe above our expectations and would constitute an excellent performance.

The Plan for Road safety Component of the Lahore Urban Transport Project1999

1. Establishment of a steering committee for implementation of the projectin which all representatives in the field of road safety are involved. Amaximum number of 14 persons should participate in the committee,about 6-7 from the Government sector and 6-7 from the private sector.The committee should be headed by a chairman who, if necessary, canwield some influence at the provincial level.

2. Adjustment of legislationI. incorporate pedestrians as legal responsible category in legislationII. raise fines to a minimal level of:

a. Rs. 50 for bicyclistb. Rs. 100 for rickshaw drivers, motorcyclists


c. Rs. 250 for parking car, truck, busd. Rs. 350-500-750-1000 (traffic violations)

III. grant authority to traffic police for processing and investigation ofaccidents (adjustment of the penal code is needed)IV. clear legislation in regard to mandatory uniform format for licensedocumentation (including number plates)V. mandatory comprehensive insurance for all licensed vehicles inaccordance with existing international standardsVI. mandatory fitting of new cars with seat belts to be followed up laterby mandatory wearing of seat belt on car front seats

3. Infrastructure in relationship to enforcementI. select important and suitable routes for enforcement of drivingbehaviour and parking behaviour as a pilot-project area to be expandedsubsequentlyII. improvement of infrastructure on selected roads

a. road markings (road segment, stopping lines for traffic lines,pedestrian crossings, get-in-lane segments)b. road signsc. parking lines on selected road segmentsd. installation of parking meters/parking zonese. build bus baysf. putting into operation defective traffic lights.

4. Infrastructure general I. unified standards for road construction, operation, and maintenance

should be agreed upon by the stakeholders in the field. They should bewritten down in a clear manual and made mandatory for use in futureroad projectsII. road safety audits (i.e. critical review of safety consequences of pro-posals and plans by a qualified expert team) should be routinely done aspart of new road projects, right from the startIII. prepare standardised tenders for road construction worksincorporating sufficient details for safety measures at construction sites,and traffic diversion measures to be taken by construction authoritiesIV. create facilities for vulnerable road users, i.e. pedestrians andcyclists:

a. footpaths and pedestrian crossing facilities b. cycle tracks along major travel corridors

c. special treatment/provision at cyclist crossings.

5. Conditions for training of traffic policeI. improvement of working conditions in the pilot-project

a. reducing working hours to max. 8 hours per day and to 6 days perweekb. increase salaries to level of motorway policec. arming of traffic police officers

II. selection max. 6 trainers in range of inspector/ deputy superintendent III. selection 150 - 200 traffic police (incl. Members of staff and 20 trafficwardens)IV. selection of training facilities (location)V. trainers receive instruction in Europe for one monthVI. start training enforcement techniques/tactics (location at Lahore atthe start, guided and supervised by international specialists on location)


VII. training of traffic wardensVIII. new specially trained unit of traffic police directly accountable to theMayorIX. few links in the chain-of-command at traffic police

6. Proposal for building a practice training institute for traffic police, alsousable for training of commercial bus and truck drivers. Assumption forinvestment is that revenue will be generated which can be used to returninvestments over a period of timeI. selection possible location (8-10 acres)II. EU expertise with examples of possibilities will be discussed withauthoritiesIII. determine need for format/size/special requirements of training circuitand training facilities (e.g.instruction rooms)IV. offer tender (guidance of preparation and during will take 2 years).Important is to retain the know-how for setting up similar facilities inother parts of Pakistan

7. EnforcementI. start enforcement with new approach on selected routes with specialfocus on regular and dangerous violationsII. 6 month publicity campaign for the new approach with specialattention to the traffic violations which will be enforced, e.g. stopping forred light, not violating the speed limit, keeping in lane, stopping forpedestrians at pedestrian crossings, using indicators in get-lane-seg-ments, correct stopping, driving in right direction, correct reversing.Sponsorship for publicity campaign to be sought from international firm. III. 6 month publicity campaign about new policy enforcement of parkingviolations (during 1 month, inform all wrongly parked drivers by way ofleaflets)IV. complaints to be handled by independent police-citizen liaisoncommittee (example Karachi)V. the revenue from parking and enforcement is to be partly rechanneledin the road safety of the road infrastructure and the working conditions ofthe special trained police unit

8. Centralisation and automatisation of the driving licensing systemI. setting up in the Punjab head office with computerized data-base forprocessing of driving licenses, preferably for the whole of Pakistan

II. in each district a sub-office with direct line of communication for theprocessing of application forms (application for new driving license andrenewal)

III. all applications for new or renewed driving license to be processed inthe district where applicant resides.IV. responsibility for issue and control under the Ministry of Transport

V. theoretical and practical driving exams to be done under theresponsibility of the Ministry of Transport in five years time

9. Centralization and automatisation of the vehicle registration systemI. setting up of a computerized vehicle registration system in a centralhead office, preferably for the whole of PakistanII. open up in the district several sub-offices where applications for a(new, transferred/technical change/stolen) vehicle registration can behanded in.


For the first period the further administrative completion to be handledby the head office

III. in a period of 3-5 years all vehicles for a technical check-up to acheck-up station. Possible technical adjustments will be done at thestation before the new legally valid vehicle registration will be handedover. IV. the registration document should contain the technical information onthe vehicle (age, model, passenger capacity, colour, engine size etc.)

10. Standardisation of vehicle registrationI. to establish by law a national format covering the registrationdocument and the vehicle registration plate

II. select easily readable number plate - in terms of size and colour - tomake identification for enforcement possible

11. Setting up/improvement structure of traffic control roomI. improvement of communication between police personnel (differentradio channels for traffic police and general police "on the street" forenforcement, escort duty VVIPS, control of operation of traffic lights)

II. 24-hour computerized access to driving license and vehicleregistration database III. direct phone lines to public services,e.g.: fire brigade, ambulance,and road authorities

IV. total communication under responsibility of police V. recruitment of control-operators among experienced traffic officers

with a long experience

12. Traffic education:I. development of documentation (teaching materials for teachers as wellas for children) for primary schoolsII. police traffic officers to be trained to become traffic educationspecialists who work in continuous cooperation with schools, publishers,NGO’s, and communication scientistsIII. to demonstrate examples of successful road safety campaigns (e.g.speeding, lane keeping, using bus bay, red light, seat belt, prioritypedestrians zebra crossings)

IV. media/tv commercials covering road safety subjects, to be sponsoredby multinationalsV. road safety campaigns should pay attention to helmet use bymotorcyclists and the use of reflectors and lights by cyclists, pedestrians,and professional drivers

4.3. Clarifications and specifications

In the discussion of the road safety plan, some attention was given to thecomposition and functioning of the steering committee. It was agreed thatthe steering committee should contain both members from government andfrom the private sector. Furthermore, it was decided that for practicalpurposes, the committee should not be too large and should be limited to asize of about 12 to 14 persons. Since, representatives from ProvincialDepartments would take seat in the committee, the committee shouldpreferably be headed by a chairman who can wield some political clout atthe provincial level.


In the discussion, the importance of the use of reflectors and lights onbicyclists and specific categories of heavy traffic (e.g. tractor trolleys) waspointed out. The road safety plan should incorporate initiatives towardsimproving this situation. It would be possible to focus one of the annual roadsafety campaigns on this particular subject.

It has been suggested in the original plan that authority for accidentinvestigation should be placed on the shoulders of the traffic police.However, this recommendation was criticized on the ground that trafficpolice would not have enough capacity to engage in court duty attendantafter accident registration. Clearly this is a point for further deliberation. Partof the present plan is to develop a special Traffic Cell within traffic policethat is mainly concerned with, and specialized in, the investigation ofserious accidents. This could be done while general accident registrationstill remains under the responsibility of the general police.

As became clear in the discussion the road safety plan should also payattention to the encouragement of helmet use by motorcyclists. Again, thissubject may the focus of a special road safety campaign. Before takinginitiatives in this direction, there should be some clarity about recommen-ded and legally prescribed helmet standards in Pakistan, and about theavailability of good (and affordable) helmets. A helmet campaign shouldonly be started when objective information can be given to the public aboutthe protective value of the helmet and the prices and sales outlets ofhelmets.

In the plan for road safety, no mention has been made of the developmentof provincial or national traffic policies. Without doubt the traffic problems inLahore and the whole of Pakistan can be influenced to a large extent byencouraging or discouraging particular modes of traffic. For this it isnecessary to develop a transport policy for the coming years. A clear andwell-implemented transport policy is likely to have significant consequencesfor development of road safety in Pakistan. However, such a policy shouldbe developed by bodies at the provincial or national level, whereas thesteering committee for the present project is mainly working at the city level- and sometimes at the provincial level. Thus, a transport policy is relevantfor road safety but it should be formulated at a different political level.

An important topic raised in the context of the plan was the reorganizationof the traffic police. Part of our plan is that in the demonstration project,there will be fewer links in the chain of command from lowest to highestlevel. This will enable faster and better coordination between different linesof command. If the demonstration project is successful, it should beseriously considered to extend this method of working to the whole trafficpolice force in Lahore.

A further issue having consequences for the police organization is thatsomewhere in the future, driver testing and licensing should be transferredto the Department of Transport. However, this should only be done aftercareful implementation at a time when the Department of Transport has thenecessary capacity and know-how to take over such tasks.


4.4. Overview of recommendations

In this section we repeat a number of recommendations of the road safetyplan. We order them according to topic and elaborate some of therecommendations. Strictly speaking, some of these recommendations gofurther than the global plan. It is up to the steering committee to decidewhether to take up on these recommendations.

Engineering

1. In order to improve road safety, especially for vulnerable road users, theLMA road authorities should agree on a procedure for introducing a roadsafety audit into the decision-making process about road planning anddesign.

2. The LMA road authorities should agree on a common set of standardsfor planning, design, and construction of roads in the Metropolitan Areaof Lahore.

3. In the long term, the separate activities of LDA/TEPA/NESPAK/MCLshould be brought under a central management body at the MetropolitanLevel. This is to be held responsible for total road network in Lahoreexcluding the highway.

4. Besides the functions of planning, designing, construction, andmaintenance, the responsibilities of the body should also include roadsafety monitoring and the introduction and evaluation of special roadsafety measures.

Enforcement of traffic laws

1. In order to generate a larger enforcement capacity of the Traffic Policeof Lahore, it is recommended that the Traffic Police is assisted in itsVVIP duty by Army or Military Police Personnel. The main responsibilityfor VVIP escort duty would still lie with Traffic Police, as laid down byofficial law, but the sheer manpower required to perform the task shouldbe divided among Traffic Police and other enforcement agencies. In thisway Traffic Police can free extra capacity to perform necessaryenforcement actions.

2. In order to improve the efficiency of traffic law enforcement, the ticketingsystem should replace the challaning system. Challans should only begiven to severe violations. For about 90% of the traffic violations a ticketshould be given.

3. It is recommended that the Traffic Police have specialists in thefollowing areas: - accident and accident data analysis;- road safety education; - safety aspects of traffic engineering.

4. The specialists of the traffic police should participate in an advisory rolein committees deciding on new road projects.


Accident investigation and reporting

1. The responsibility of the LMA Road authorities in regard to safetymonitoring should be clearly described in legally binding documents.

2. Road authorities should provide the Traffic Police with basic facilities orassistance in order to determine the exact location of the accident.

3. A special Traffic Research Cell should be set up within the Traffic Policethat makes a more thorough accident investigation based on the FIR'smade up by the General Police. The main task of the Research Cellwould be to provide quick feedback to the Traffic Police and RoadAuthorities on the exact location of the accidents and patterns ofaccidents which would need further attention or even immediatemeasures.

Legislation

1. Federal Government of Pakistan should enact the proposed newlegislation in the Road Bill 1998 in the short term.

2. After the Road Bill 1998 has been enacted, the Government has theformal power to make rules for the use of the seat belt. The Federal/Punjab Government should require all new motor vehicles to beequipped with seat belts and to make seat belt use by drivers and frontpassengers mandatory within and outside urban areas.

3. Existing legislation (MVO 65) requires all drivers of transport vehicles tobe registered by the Traffic Police. The Traffic Police should get high-level approval and some extra funding to implement this law. Theregistration of the transport drivers should be computerized.

4. In order to streamline the process of traffic law enforcement, it isstrongly recommended that the ticketing system is put into operationaccording to the provisions in the Road Bill 1998. If the Road Bill 1998 isnot accepted, then separate legal provisions should be made to ensurewider implementation of the ticketing system.

5. In order to streamline the process of traffic law enforcement, it isrecommended that legislation is passed that allow police to issue ticketsby mail or under the windscreen-wiper to registered vehicle owners whohave been observed to drive recklessly or dangerously, or who haveparked their vehicle in a appointed no-parking area.

6. In order to improve the efficiency of traffic law enforcement it should bemade legally possible to issue a ticket to the owner of a vehicle on thebasis of license plate recognition. The owner of the vehicle is to be heldresponsible for the violations committed, irrespective of whether he wasdriving the vehicle at that time or not. This rule should also apply to theowners of commercial vehicles.


Licensing, registration, testing, and training

1. Transport Federations, the Department of Transport, and the TrafficPolice should agree on a total programme for licensing, training, andtesting of professional drivers.

2. A mandatory 10-15 day training course for professional drivers should beintroduced. The newly to be established Police Traffic Training Instituteat Lahore should be the first school to be licensed to develop and tooffer this course. After they have followed the course, they will receive aprovisional license to be made definite after a 3-day follow-up courseafter one year, or two years of professional driving.

3. A start should be made with the computerized registration ofprofessional drivers, laid down by MVO 1995, under authority SP of theLahore District.

4. Full computerization of driver licensing should be realized by the TrafficPolice. It is recommend that Traffic Police receive professionalassistance in setting up a reliable, easy to operate computerizedlicensing system.

Funding of road safety in LMA

1. A special road fund should be established for the management of roadnetwork in the LMA. In an annual report, the financial administration ofthis fund should be reported and approved by an accountant.

2. Part of the revenue generated by traffic law enforcement should go backto traffic police. One option is to rechannel funding by transferring theauthority over the General Police (including Traffic Police) to anautonomous Metropolitan Government. In this way it would be ensuredthat revenue gained by enforcement would also find its way back into theMetropolitan Area. The Metropolitan Government should then providethe Police and Traffic Police with basic facilities such as vehicles,specialized equipment etc.

3. Another possibility to rechannel funding is 1 or 2-year agreementsbetween Government of the Punjab and Police about investment-returnschemes in the area of traffic law enforcement.

4. Besides revenue generated through enforcement there are variousalternative sources to “tap in” for funding road safety activities in Lahore,e.g., a percentage of the driving license fees, of the vehicle registrationfee, and of the vehicle insurance premium. A percentage of the petroltax could also be allocated for road safety purposes. The steeringcommittee for road safety in Lahore should come up with a proposalabout the contribution from these sources to achieve sustainable fundingfor road safety activities.

Road safety education

1. A special publicity director under joint authority of Department ofEducation and Traffic Police Punjab should develop provincial and local


publicity campaigns on a regular basis. The campaigns basically shouldserve two functions:a. Inform the public about specific projects by the road authorities and

police actions and advise on behaviourb. Enhance general awareness about road safety problems and

potential measures road users can take to protect themselves fromhazards

2. Together with an education specialist, the Traffic Police should devise a5-year education plan for different road users in the LMA.

3. A driving school for traffic police drivers and other professional driversshould be established.

4. Ministry of Education and the Punjab School Text Book Board and theTraffic Police Lahore should coordinate and create special road safetycourses for children.

5. Traffic education for children should focus on practical survival skills foreveryday situations.

6. The special knowledge of the Traffic Police Lahore about road hazardsfor pedestrians in Lahore streets should be used to focus education onsituations in Lahore itself.

Road safety publicity

1. A special publicity director, resorting under the Department of Educationor under the Traffic Police, should be assigned to support road safetyinitiatives with positive publicity.

2. Existing radio channels should be utilized in giving route advise fordrivers in Lahore, e.g. helping them circumvent traffic jams.

3. Pakistan role models (e.g. famous cricketers) should be used in publicitycampaigns.

4. Road safety campaigns should address amongst others the followingtopics: helmet use by motorcyclists, use of reflectors by cyclists, andheavy traffic.

5. Campaigns should only be held when complete, good and objectiveinformation about a subject is available. For instance, for a helmetcampaign it should be clear which Pakistan legal standards exist for theconstruction of helmets and where helmets can be bought at affordableprizes.


5. The implementation plan


Like other plans for road safety, the present plan for Lahore can only beeffective if certain conditions are fulfilled. First of all there must be thepolitical will to acknowledge road safety as a problem which has to besolved. As second condition must be stated that an organizational frame-work has to be created in order to implement the outcomes of the plan.Finally, obviously funds have to be made available to realize the plan.

In section 5.2. special attention is given to two central elements of the roadsafety plan, the setup of a central steering committee, and thedemonstration project.

Viewed from the institutional side, general implementation conditions arediscussed in section 5.3.

In Section 5.4 the composition, tasks, secretarial support, funding, andevaluative control of the steering committee are described. The preparationof the demonstration project is described in section 5.5.

Sections 5.6 to 5.9 present the Terms of Reference or generalimplementation issues for specific parts of the road safety plan.

5.2. General introduction

There are clearly two highlights in the implementation of the road safetyplan. First, there is the crucial first step of the formation of a steeringcommittee for road safety. Second, there is the proposition to start anambitious demonstration project in the very short term. In this introductorysection, we would like to explain clearly why these two events are so crucialfor the implementation of the total plan.

As we have argued in several places in foregoing chapters, variousgovernmental and social sectors are involved in road safety: e.g. trafficpolice, road authorities, NGO’s, transport federations etc. If these sectorscoordinate their activities and work together, they can achieve far betterresults in terms of traffic management and safety than if they work inisolation and only follow their own agendas.

At the moment, the setting up of a special committee for road safety is thebest way to achieve coordination between the different stakeholders in thefield. Of course, much more than just coordination of routine activities is atstake. The stakeholders need to work together to achieve well-describedaims. The steering committee plays a crucial role in setting these aims andencouraging and persuading stakeholders to work towards or support theseaims. Furthermore, an important task of the steering committee is toascertain that it’s activities are seriously evaluated. To perform these andother tasks, the steering committee must have certain financial and politicalpowers. In the implementation plan in this chapter we have described in


some detail powers, tasks, secretarial support, funding, and evaluativecontrol of the steering committee.

In summary, the steering committee is the instrument that “binds” thevarious elements of the present plan “together” and that makes the plan“workable”. It is hard to imagine how the present plan can be realizedwithout a clear central steering party that can set a course, coordinate, anddetermine the pace of work.

In our discussions with stakeholders, it has become clear that some shortterm success in the field of traffic and traffic safety is badly needed. To putit in somewhat simplistic terms: there has been too much talk, and too littleaction. A quick success in the field of road safety, observable in the outerappearance of the roads and the performance of traffic police, observablein traffic behaviour and discipline of road users, and in reduction ofaccidents, would show several points. First, of course, it would show thatvisible results can be achieved when the political will and good organizationare present. Second, it would improve the public image of all the partiesinvolved; traffic police, road authorities, and local government.

Seen in this way the demonstration project which is clearly targeted towardsquick success, can motivate stakeholders to continue the process ofcooperation. Whatever political or financial powers the committee mayhave, the motivation of participating stakeholders to cooperate with oneanother in the committee will have it’s own dynamics and will certainlydepend upon the actual progress being made. An early success in which allpartners can equally share, will solidify the motivation to cooperate towardsreaching the targets set in the current plan.

In the light of these considerations, the execution of the demonstrationproject deserves some special attention in this chapter. As far as possiblewe have tried to specify the preparatory steps for the execution of thedemonstration project.

In the demonstration project engineering, enforcement, public educationand legislative changes must come together to achieve good results. Theengineering part of the demonstration project - the road safety audit andresulting upgrading of a special stretch of road network in Lahore - mayalready start in summer 1999. The preparation of the training of speciallyselected traffic police officers can also start late summer 1999. The actualexecution of the demonstration project could already start in the beginningof 2000. The first results in terms of behaviours and accidents could alreadybe monitored after the first six months of 2000.

Phasing of the projectBoth the setup of a steering committee for road safety and the execution ofa demonstration project in the centre of Lahore are crucial first steps to givethe road safety plan strong impetus, coherence, and direction in the firstphase.

The road safety plan goes further than these first two steps. The other veryambitious elements of the plan pertain to a) the establishment of a trafficpolice driving school for traffic police and professional drivers, b) the setupof a modernized traffic command centre under supervision of the traffic


police, and c) an integrated system for driver training, testing and licensing.Obviously, these targets take longer than 1 or 2 years to realize.

Given the scope and complexity of the issues raised by the present plan, itis logical that the implementation should follow a step-by-step, phasedapproach. It is simply impossible to tackle all the relevant issues in the firstyears of the project. Within the period 2000-2005 we may distinguishbetween short term (2000-2001), midterm (2002-2003) and long term(2004-2005). In Table 5.1 a tentative proposal for phasing of the differentproject activities is given, together with some (conservative) cost estimatesfor major elements of the plan.

In taking up these ambitious targets, the committee may take stock of theknowledge gained by comparable projects in other areas of Pakistan or onother levels (e.g. national initiatives in the field of traffic and traffic safety).In the first two or three years of the project, the steering committee mayorganize some tentative first discussions or workshops about topics in orderto prepare more detailed and better structured meetings in later years.

In the road safety plan we have not allocated any separate budget for aconstruction of a central traffic command centre or specific costs arisingfrom the implementation of an integrated system of driver training, testingand licensing. Especially in regard to these two fields, the steeringcommittee may play a stimulating role, but it is also to a large extentdependent upon social, legal, or organizational developments outside itsdirect sphere of influence.


Period Subject or activity Major estimated costs orsources of extra revenue

1999-2000

1. Setup of steering committee (section 5.4)2. Training of Traffic Police (section 5.5.2)3. Upgrading of selected road network (section 5.5.1)4. Formulation of 5-year road safety policy (targets, methods, and funding) included

(section 5.4)5. Preparatory meetings about road safety audit (section 5.7)6. Preparatory stakeholders meetings improvement accident monitoring

->Less than 0.2 Million $ US.->Appr. 10 Million $ US.

2000-2001

1. Preparatory stakeholders meetings integrative system training, testing &licensing

2. Preparatory stakeholders meetings possibility of introducing morecomprehensive insurance schemes

3. Preparatory stakeholders meetings on introduction of parking zones 4. Agreement on road safety audit procedure (section 5.7)5. Preparatory meetings traffic command centre (section 5.9)6. First multi-media road safety campaign (e.g. use of reflectors) (section 5.10)

7. Implementation and evaluation of police enforcement on selected road network(section 5.5.3)

8. Further fine-tuning or adjustment of the road safety policy9. Production of first year report

->Appr. 0.3-0.4 Million $ US,sponsorship to be sought.

->Generation of extra revenue

2001-2002

1. Preparatory stakeholders meetings integrative system of training, testing andlicensing

2. Second multi-media road safety campaign (e.g. importance motorcycle helmets)3. Preparatory stakeholders meeting about manual & legal procedure unified

standards4. Introduction of parking zones in demonstration area5. Possible extension of police enforcement to wider area6. Production of second year report

->Appr. 0.3-0.4 Million $ US,sponsorship to be sought.

->Generation of extra revenue

2002-2003

1. Preparatory stakeholders meetings integrative system of training, testing andlicensing

2. Preparatory meetings traffic command centre3. Preparation of commercial exploitation plan training institute4. Start construction training institute (section 5.8)5. Third multi-media road safety campaign (e.g. seat belt use)

6. Possible introduction of parking zones in wider area7. Production of manual on unified standards8. Production of third year report

->Appr. 0.3-0.4 Million $ US,sponsorship to be sought->Generation of extra revenue->Appr. 0.1-0.2 Million $ US

2003-2004

1. Construction and finish of training institute2. Start commercial and professional exploitation of training institute3. Decision-making meetings integrated system training, testing, driving4. Production of fourth year report

->Appr. 5 Million $ US

2004-2005

1. Evaluation of and accounting for the total project in a separate report2. Formulation of outline of new road safety policy with recommendations for the

period 2005-2010.3. Production of final year report

Table 5.1. Tentative proposal for the phasing of several activities in the road safety plan (Appr.=approximately).

5.3. Institutional strengthening measures

There are a number of institutional strengthening measures that wouldenhance the likelihood of effective implementation according to plan. Firstof all the institutions involved in implementation should have some basicstability as to funding and composition of middle and upper levelmanagement. It has been observed that organizations like TEPA may


experience a sharp and unexpected cutback in the yearly funding. It hasalso been observed that top management positions in Motorway police andTraffic Lahore police usually are not held for more than a few months or afew years. The stability and associated dependability of an institutiondepends to a large extent on the stability of leadership in office. Therefore,in laying the implementation groundwork for the plan efforts, there shouldbe some stability in funding and leadership structure, at least for thepersons who are involved in the demonstration project.

A second institutional strengthening measure would be a greater clarity ofrespective responsibilities of institutions in the field of traffic managementand traffic safety. In the preparation and execution of the road safety planthe steering committee should urge stakeholders to actively take upresponsibility. In many issues there should be a shared responsibility amongdifferent stakeholders. Even in the case of a shared responsibility, it is stillpossible to pinpoint in more detail the responsibilities of the separateagencies.

To give an example. In our view the prime responsibility for safetymonitoring (analysing and reporting on accidents in certain areas and oncertain roads) would have to lie with the road authorities and the policetogether. In this sense, there is a shared responsibility.

But separate responsibilities can also be distinguished:1. Road authorities are responsible for the analysis of accident data and

the production of a formal annual report of the road safety situation.They do not necessarily have to undertake this activity, analysis, andreporting themselves. But they do have to make sure that some otheragency, such as the traffic police or University, will do this, and will haveresources or assistance to do this. In the case of reporting, theresponsibility of the road authorities also includes the requirement ofmaking the accident figures accessible to Government, NGO’s, andjournalists.

2. The prime responsibility for accident registration would have to lie withthe General Police.

3. The prime responsibility for gathering the accident reports and makingall of the information in these reports accessible to further analysis andreporting should to lie with the Traffic Police.

This means that the police are responsible for accident registration, but theroad authorities are responsible for helping to create the conditions thatmake good accident registration possible. If, for instance, the police need amarking system on the intersections in order to describe more clearly thelocation of the accident, then the road authorities should construct amarking system for Lahore intersections. Also, if the police have insufficientmeans to record the accidents on computer disk, or to analyse the data orput the data in a report, the road authorities will have to assist with eitherfinancial or manpower resources.

A last point regarding the institutional side of the implementation concernsthe interaction between political and engineering institutions in the field oftraffic. In order to benefit to the full extent from the professional engineeringknowledge of Lahore traffic engineers, the role of political and bureaucraticinterference in the engineering decision-making process should be reduced


to a certain extent. Of course, on high political levels targets can be set forthe traffic system. That is both the task and duty of politicians. However,once these targets are set, it is up to planners and engineers how to meetthese targets in ways that ensure a good and safe functioning of the trafficsystem. A politically independent road safety audit team that supervises thevarious stages of planning, design, and construction of roads, may well bethe answer to this particular problem.

5.4. Establishment of the steering committee

Formal requirementsIn order to be able to function properly the steering committee should meetthe following formal requirements:1. The committee has a legal existence, enabling it to enforce decisions

and to manage a budget.2. The committee comes under the highest possible authority (The Chief

Minister of the Punjab) 3. The committee only includes high-ranking decision-makers who are able

to im pose into their own sector the decisions taken collectively. 4. The committee only includes permanent members, personally

nominated for a length of time sufficient to ensure continuity of action (atleast three years).

5. The committee has the means to provide adequate training for itsmembers in areas where knowledge may be lacking.

6. The committee is able to order and sponsor special studies or researchfrom competent partners in order to get the right information andproposals to support decisions.

7. The committee has financing powers that enable it to perform its variousfunctions.

We propose that the committee has about 12-14 members, about 6-7 fromthe Government sector and 6-7 from the private sector. If necessary theChairman leading the committee should have sufficient political clout to turnpolitical wheels. Obviously, for effective functioning of the committee office,facilities and secretarial support are necessary.

Task setting and fundingIt is proposed here to finance the activities of the committee in the period2000-2005 for a total amount of US $ 12 Million. This amount of moneywould enable the committee to perform the following tasks:

1. To coordinate and supervise implementation and evaluation of aspecial enforcement demonstration project in the Lahore MetropolitanArea in the period 2000-2001.

2. To formulate a 5-year road safety policy for the Lahore MetropolitanArea. The policy should include: targets, method, and fundinginstruments.

3. To stimulate, and if necessary, support the Traffic Police in the taskof providing clear description and analysis of the road safety situationin Lahore. At the least there should be an annual overview of theexact locations of fatality and casualty accidents

4. To develop a economically viable plan for the establishment of atraining school near Lahore.


5. To develop, and if possible, implement an integrated plan for drivertraining, testing, and licensing in the province. A blueprint for apossible plan is given in this report, but should be worked out in moredetail, in collaboration with parties involved.

6. To initiate and supervise different mass-media road safetycampaigns in the Lahore area.

7. To encourage adoption of road safety audit procedures in new roadprojects and to encourage professional independence of the auditteam.

8. To investigate possibilities for introducing more comprehensiveinsurance schemes for road users.

9. To encourage changes in legislation that are beneficial to road safety.10. To actively seek sponsorship for road safety activities from national

or international companies or to seek cooperation with companies inthe field of road safety.

11. To encourage traffic education programs at schools and colleges anddevelop special materials for this purpose.

12. To inform stakeholders in the field about road safety issues projectsand results in the Lahore area by a two-monthly newsletter.

For part of the activities there are already plans, proposals, or initiativestaken by other agencies or departments. The committee should not renewinvestigations into areas that already have been under study, but ratherseek new ways of bringing sound proposals to the attention of policymakers. Also, the committee should hire professionals to executespecialized tasks, e.g.:- Research bureaus for evaluative research into the effects of police and

publicity campaigns- Advertising or marketing research bureau for road safety campaigns

Secretarial supportThe secretarial support for the committee is very important. Two to threefull-time secretaries will have to do a lot of the ‘leg work’ for the committee.

The tasks of the secretaries are:1. To supply the members of the committee with information or documents

relevant to the problems at hand.2 To fully prepare all meetings of the committee and to write full reports of

results of the meeting.3. To organize meetings, workshops, and seminars about road safety

issues with various stakeholders, and to note down the results of thesemeetings.

4. To organize and safe all documents, studies, materials, records that maybe of use to study the road safety problems at hand.

5. To prepare business or sponsorship contracts between the committeeand other organizations.

6. To keep account of the financial administration of the activities of thecommittee.

7. To organize special training or education for members of the committeein fields of road safety.


It is proposed here that two or three secretaries:1. Are hired full-time for the period 2000-2005.2. Will be provided from the start of their tenure with modern office space,

including computer, printer, copier, national and international phonelines.

3. Are fluent in English speaking and writing and have good knowledge ofcomputer software.

4. Are knowledgeable in the field of traffic.5. Have a University degree.6. Have some basic knowledge or experience with planning or budgeting

processes or can get training in that area.

Allocation of moneyIn this plan we can only give a rough outline of financial matters.

The total 6-year project would need financing of about 22 million US $ toachieve most of the mentioned targets. About 10 million US $ is needed toupgrade the roads for the demonstration project. It has been suggested thatthis money may be allocated via the budget of MCL. About 12 million US $should be reserved for the construction of a driving school for police andprofessional drivers and for the organization of various activitiescoordinated by a steering committee.

A suggestion for the division of the annual a budget of about US $ 2 millionmay be as follows:

- a 45% investment (in total about 5 million US $) in the construction ofa training centre (with training ground) that can be used as drivingschool for both police and professional drivers; staff of the trainingcentre should be paid out of the commercial exploitation of thiscentre

- 25% (about 3 million US $) investment in several road safetypublicity campaigns (television spots, material, leaflets, schoolmaterials);

- 10% (about 1,2 million US $) secretarial and organizational support(meetings, reports, distribution of newsletter) The success of the committee will to a large extent depend upon thequality of the secretarial support; the secretaries are in effect the‘ears’ and ‘eyes’ of the committee

- 10% investment in police activities (on condition that police will showcertain results in terms of number of traffic tickets)Through more professional enforcement the police will triple orquadruple the amount of money from enforcement of moving andparking violations. Therefore, the investment in police enforcementwill flow back to government by other channels. The profit to be madeby police enforcement should be partly rechannelled into road safety.An important task of the steering committee is to calculate the cost-benefit ratio of investments in police enforcement and to establishhow much profit is being made from intensified and professionalpolice enforcement.

- 10% evaluation and monitoring of results Empirical, scientific evaluation of the various road safety activities isneeded to establish the success of activities. The National TransportSafety Council can supervise evaluative research. External


consultancy, e.g. from SWOV, can be sought for different phases ofthe project.

Evaluative and budgetary controlThe committee can set the terms of reference for professional sub-contractors and can supervise the work. Of course, the committee shoulduse its finances well. In this respects we propose the following safeguards. 1. Every year the committee is obliged to formulate in an annual plan on

which activities money will be spent and how the results of theseactivities will be evaluated. The Chief Minister is required to give hisapproval to the proposal.

2. The committee produces an annual report accounting for its activities, results, and its internal and financial administration. The annual report isscreened by a professional accountant.

It is very important that the various parts of the plan are evaluated well.Evaluation can be seen as a continuous process that seeks to improve uponand refine the measures taken.

Critical and objective evaluation of the several steps in the execution of theelements of the plan is needed for several reasons. First, evaluation canshow which methods in a specific field are the most effective. For example,the police enforcement in the demonstration area may use two or threestrategies of which one is clearly the best. Thus, the effectiveness of aspecific road safety measure is to a large extent dependent upon themanner of implementation. Evaluation is necessary to consider how theimplementation of a specific measure can be improved if the measure is tobe repeated at a later time. For example, on the basis of the experienceswith a road safety campaign, a precise scenario can be written out for theorganization of campaign activities and can be repeated for lattercampaigns. Finally, the results of evaluation may be used very well in orderto generate positive publicity about the road safety activities and a positiveimage. This will generate both political and public goodwill and support.

Evaluation literally ‘pays itself back’ by showing which measures areineffective and therefore can be discontinued, and which measures areeffective but can be made more cost-efficient by better implementationprocedures. The information gathered for evaluative purposes in mostcases can also be used to give a better estimate of costs and benefits ofmeasures.

Advise on how to conduct evaluation of project activities can be soughtfrom the National Transport Safety Council. A representative may beinvited to partake in the steering committee, or for some subjectsconsultancy may be sought from specialized road safety institutes such asSWOV, TRL, or ITC.

5.5. Preparation of the demonstration project

The demonstration project requires:- selection and upgrading of a road network in Lahore (section 5.5.1), - the training in techniques of enforcement of specially selected police

officers from the Lahore traffic police (section 5.5.2), and


- adjustment of several conditions that may support enforcementoperations during the project (section 5.5.3.).

5.5.1. The demonstration area

This section relies on preparatory work done by Mr. K. Khan, engineer ofMott McDonald. About 35 km of the main road network in Lahore have beenprovisionally selected for the special demonstration project. The roads arebasically well-maintained, main roads in the centre of Lahore that have aimportant function for the processing of the total traffic stream.

The selected roads are: Mcleod Road, Empress Road, Allama Iqbal Road,Canal Bank Road from Jail Road Underpass to Allama Iqbal Road, DavisRoad, Egerton Road, Kashmir Road, The Mall, Lawrence Road, RaceCourse Road, Mozang Road, Queens Road, Lytton Road, BahawalpurRoad, Lower Mall, Edward Road, Fane Road, Begum Road, MontgomeryRoad, Cooper Road and Abbot Road.

In the short term, in August 1999, a road safety audit can be done toestablish how and where these roads will be upgraded. It is estimated thatthe necessary upgrading of this road network will cost about 500 millionrupees or 10 million $ US. A road safety audit has to be initiated on receiptof approval from the client. The duration of the road safety audit would betwo weeks. Digital mapping of the roads will take 1.5 months, and design ofroadworks will take another 15 days. Digital mapping could start simulta-neously with safety audit cost of digital mapping and design being Rs. 2.6million.

Improvement works can proceed on completion of road design and will takefour months. MCL would have to finance the works on these roads.Appropriate cost of road works is Rs. 500 million

5.5.2. Training of police

On special request by the Chief Minister of the Province of the Punjab, theDutch Institute for Traffic Care (ITC) has made the following proposal fortraining of the Lahore police:1. To select a maximum of 6 senior police officers, who will be trained in

Holland or the UK (July/August/Sept 1999);2. The trained police officers (trainers) will be responsible for the training of

the 150 selected police officers in the rank of HC, ASI / SI / Inspector(Sept/Oct 1999);

3. ITC will provide the guidance during this period of training in Lahore;4. ITC will provide the guidance during the first part of the enforcement

period;5. ITC will provide the guidance, in association with a local infrastructure

specialist, of the road safety audit for the pilot zone, with regard toenforcement, road accidents, attitude, violations etc;

6. ITC will provide a plan for a training institute, where the police officerscan be trained to drive patrol cars and motorbikes professionally, understressful conditions, and new enforcement approaches/tactics can beworked out and skills can be improved;

7. ITC will mediate in the purchase of enforcement instruments, e.g. radarguns, traffic cones, reflective jackets, flashlights, stopflags etc.


5.5.3. Conditions for non-corrupt and authoritative enforcement

As always, in looking at one facet of a problem broader, considerationsarise. The issues with which traffic police deal are part of a wider economic,social, political, and environmental context. The future nature of trafficpolicing will depend upon changes in the law, the development of newtechnology, altered social, and political priorities and environmentalpressures.

The real problem seems to be the economical problem of scarcity ofresources. The Punjab Government faces manifold social and economicalproblems and has limited funds available and may be reluctant to put extrafunding in traffic police. The Traffic Police Lahore faces many trafficproblems, have limited resources, and may, in the view of the government,not be seen as able to deliver the services required by the community. Theway these parties, Government and Police, interact with one another is one-sided and solely in ‘asking’ modus: Government asks improved servicesfrom the police (without seeing any results); the Police ask extra funding,personnel and equipment from Government (without getting any).

Most of the analyses of police functioning have rightly pointed out the lackof resources of the traffic police and presented a plea for better funding andbetter stability of tenure (Background study 8.4). What past analyses havefailed to point out is that in many metropolitan cities, police enforcement oftraffic laws is an important source of income. This is an important pointbecause it indicates one way out of the 'lack of' dilemma. An efficient andfair traffic law enforcement system can bring in a considerable amount ofmoney. Consequently, the funding which goes into traffic law enforcementmay pay itself back within a period of one year.

The foregoing means that the Punjab Government could actually ‘invest’ intraffic law enforcement and end up with a considerable profit, of which partmay be again rechannelled into traffic safety purposes. So this seems to bea clear instance of a 'win-win' situation in which both Government andPolice may stand to win.

Thus from an economical viewpoint, there is a clear way out of the 'lack of;ask only' dilemma. What should be done is that the Government of thePunjab invests in resources for traffic police and that traffic police returnsthese investments in term of number of tickets generated. However, likebusiness investments, it should be clear what benefits from investmentsmay be expected and what strategy will be used to collect these benefits.For this purpose, the Police must present a clear enforcement plan to theGovernment with objectives, methods, and expected benefits in terms ofsafety, traffic flow, and amount of detected offenders clearly spelled out. Aspart of this plan, an objective evaluation of results must be included in orderto determine whether the targets have been achieved. In fact, thisevaluation should be done at several times during the total project in orderto be able to change enforcement methods or priorities in reaction topractical circumstances or difficulties.

To those who find this a far-fetched idea, it may be pointed out that in acountry like the Netherlands (population 15 million) the yearly profit from


enforcement of traffic law violations is several hundred million US dollars.The Public Prosecutor's Office in the Netherlands which also takes interestin detecting traffic offenders, invests money in special 2-3-year enforce-ment projects and expects a return in amount of fixed-penalty ticketsissued. In many of these projects the costs of investment are returnedwithin half a year after the start of the project. The city of Amsterdam easilyearns 20 million dollars a year from parking enforcement alone (parkingenforcement being done by traffic wardens). In Germany, where large citieshave the authority to conduct their own speed checks on speeding drivers,several cities make profits of five to ten million dollars a year. LikeAmsterdam, these German cities who earn considerable sums of moneyfrom speed enforcement, gain a considerable of additional money from paidparking and parking enforcement.

In the Netherlands and in other European countries, the relationshipbetween police and government has slowly changed over time. In modern-day society, the dynamics of social change are so fast that the police needto react quickly and decisively to new forms of crime, to changes in publiccomplaints, and to new developments in traffic and traffic violations. In sucha dynamic society, the police need to adapt quickly, to change quickly torespond to new challenges.

Modern times undoubtedly have also reached Lahore Metropolitan Area.Lahore also faces a rapidly changing social and economical situation:steadily increasing population, changes in public transport, many plannedchanges in the infrastructure, and, inevitably, large increases in motorizedvehicles. The sheer increase in population and motorized traffic will causeaccident rates to increase. Very likely, the problems of air pollution andcongestion will only increase over time. The traffic problems seem largeand it seems very likely they will increase over time.

What is needed more and more is an effective traffic police with theknowledge and means to respond swiftly and decisively to the challenges ofthis rapidly changing situation. Government, whether provincial ormetropolitan, has to provide the Traffic Police with the necessary resourcesto adapt to this situation. Part of these resources will also include legal andadministrative reform of the system of offender detection and prosecution.Of course, Government should have assurance that its investments will notbe wasted and will in time be returned to them (even with profit!).

Quality assurances are important for any investments Government makes,whether it be an investment in road construction or an investment in trafficpolicing resources. Through a process of planning, design, construction andsupervision of construction, a road is built. Government pays for the totalprocess and has reasonable quality assurance of the final outcome, thecompleted road. In the case of enforcement, although dealing with adifferent product, the process is not so far different, and quality assurancecan be planned and given. A global plan is being made for enforcement, theglobal plan is refined into a operational design of police activities, andfinally these activities are implemented and evaluated.

Given the sheer mass of traffic violations in Lahore, paid parking, parkingenforcement, enforcement of speeding, red-light negation, lane-keeping,and documents will bring in the money. There are two extreme outcomes.


One extreme outcome would be that despite all efforts of police, road userscontinue to a large extent in violating several traffic laws resulting in acontinuous large influx of ticket money. When this happens, enforcementwould generate a continuous steady flow of ticket money, and part of thismoney could then be used again for more effective road safety activitiesthat will succeed in changing driver behaviour.

Another extreme outcome would be that road users are so stronglyimpressed by police enforcement activities that they would abstain fromunsafe behaviour. In this case, after a certain time, little money would becoming out of the enforcement activities because of the achieved change inbehaviour. In practice, some middle outcome has been observed in manycities: under influence of persistent enforcement activities, road userbehaviour tends to become more safe and law-abiding, but a certainproportion of road users continue with traffic violations.

In conclusion, we may state that purely from an economical point of view,there is much to be said for Government investing in Traffic Policeresources. However, obviously there is more at stake than just money. Howwill the relations between public, especially professional drivers, and policebe affected if police significantly enhances its role as enforcing agency? Astrong adverse public reaction towards increased enforcement actions is thelast thing we want. The traffic police are in the business of solving problemsnot in creating new ones.

Secondly, we may ask how the intensified enforcement actions will relate tothe corrupt behaviour of police officers. Will police corruption thrive under astronger enforcement regime? The two questions are intertwined. Thereaction of the public towards increased enforcement will to a large extentdepend upon the perception of safety value and fairness in police activities.To the extent that police action is seen as fair, and in the interest of trafficand traffic safety, road users will tend to accept intensified enforcement,especially when officers make a good impression and can explain clearly,patiently, and with authority why a particular offence is dangerous, and whya ticket is given.

Until now we have painted a rather rosy picture of money flowing in fromintensified police enforcement and each party, Government and Police,benefiting from the mutual agreement. However, it should be clear thatsome drastic measures have to be taken in order to make thedemonstration project successful.

1. The stability of expertise, knowledge, and skills of traffic police mustbe ensured. At present, the continuous transferral of personnelbetween General and Traffic Police acts as a solid barrier for anyattempts to improve or hold on to the professional competence of theTraffic Police. This point has been repeatedly made by severalexperts and we can only repeat it again. At minimum, police at highermanagement level should be given a fixed tenure - guaranteed bylaw - of 3 years with automatic standard lengthening after satisfyingperformance.

2. The traffic police must be able to mobilize enough well-trainedmanpower to engage in the enforcement activities. At present the


police find their hand tied to traffic management and V.V.I.P. escortduty. One option is to alleviate escort duty of the Traffic Police byusing manpower from other enforcement agencies for this purpose.Another option is to bring the present manpower up to normativestrength. Untrained manpower should not be used for enforcementpurposes.

3. The total traffic law enforcement system - including the legal systemand education and publicity activities - should be geared towardssupporting the operations of the officers in traffic. The trafficviolations should be for 80% to 90% processed by an administrativeprocedure without interference from the courts. The arguments forthis are clear and straightforward. The courts are already overloadedwith cases and would simply not be able to handle the amount ofcases which would be brought in by intensified enforcement activities.According to the evidence we have reviewed, the challaning systemhas never worked effectively as far as swiftness and strictness ofpunishment is concerned. The experience with fixed penalty ticketshas been positive. Almost 100% of these tickets are being paid.

4. In order to prepare road users for intensified enforcement and toadvise them on how to behave in safe and legal ways, the use ofmass publicity channels is a necessary tool. By radio, television, andnewspapers road users should be informed in advance about thepurpose and the procedure of the coming enforcement actions. Thepublicity can explain the relationship between enforcement actionsand road safety, and can stress the elements of both fairness andstrictness in the actions of the police. The results of the police actions- i.e. number of offenders caught in the first week of intensifiedenforcement - may also receive a lot of press and media attention inorder to increase the public perception of the likelihood of gettingcaught.

5. Police should use new modes of operation in traffic to increaseeffectiveness and visibility of enforcement actions. The presentdeployment of manpower over a number of points seems adequatefrom a traffic management point of view. But for the purposes ofenforcement, this deployment may not be optimal. In most countriesand cities, traffic enforcement tactics involve small teams of policeofficers who check on a limited number of violations on certainspecially selected routes or areas.

6. High-level political support for the enforcement action is necessaryright from the start of the enforcement campaign. The enforcement istargeted towards all road users who violate certain traffic rules.Undoubtedly, a number of these offenders will be high officials. Theyshould realize that they cannot expect preferential treatment in thesematters. Like other road users, they have been warned in advance ofthe coming police actions and of procedures. If the Traffic Policeengage in strict and fair procedures of enforcement, over timerespect will grow.

7. In the long term, special legal amendments should be made thatplace the responsibility for traffic violations on the registered owner of


the vehicles in the case that the driver cannot be identified and theonly information is the number plate recognition. In the case of speedenforcement, red-light enforcement, and parking enforcement, it willnot always be possible to stop or contact the driver himself. In thatcase the law must put the responsibility on the owner of the vehicle toidentify the driver of the vehicle at the time of the violation. If thedriver denies he himself drove the car, he will have to deliver proofthat another person drove the car. If the driver does not respond tothe request to identify the driver of the car, the responsibility for theviolation will be placed upon himself since, in principle, he isresponsible for what happens with his car.

8. Information about the exact location of accidents is absolutelynecessary in order to steer police activities towards those areas orroad stretches with a high concentration of accidents and unsafebehaviour.

9. Involvement of NGO’s is necessary in order to guarantee that policewill maintain fair and strict procedures in detection and subsequenttreatment of traffic offenders.

10. Police officers will have to receive special training in regard to thenew enforcement tactics. They must receive precise instruction onwhat constitutes dangerous violations, and how they have to observeand register these violations. The element of personal discretion in matters of enforcement shouldbe minimized. Moreover, the police must be able to explaincourteously but decidedly to the road user, why his behaviour isillegal, why it constitutes a danger, and why it is necessary to issue aticket for his behaviour.

11. Corruption will undermine the respect of the public for the police andthe credibility of the police officers. A special anti-corruptioncampaign should accompany the demonstration project. Theelements of this anti-corruption campaign are: - improvement in working conditions of the Traffic Police (shorter

working hours, better salaries) of police personnel since corruptionis mainly economically rooted

- full clarity of procedures of ticketing and challaning both to thepolice officers and to the public.

- continuous supervision of police enforcement activities by NGO’s- registration of complaints by NGO’s.

12. Evaluation of effects of police activities on road user behaviour isnecessary in order to determine what levels and tactics of enforce-ment are most successful. Evaluation may improve decisions as tohow available manpower may be effectively allocated over routes orareas.

We believe that fulfilment of (most of) these conditions is necessary inorder to enable traffic law enforcement in Lahore to achieve both saferbehaviours in traffic and considerable revenue.


5.6. Unified standards

We suggest the following Terms of Reference:A manual in English with a clear description of standards.

The manual should be:- complete in its coverage of planning, design, construction and

maintenance issues- evaluated and approved of by known experts in the field- have legal status.

The manual should contain:- explicit definitions of concepts- description of general requirements as to road layout, signs, markings,

traffic lights etc.- description of specific requirement as to road layout, signs, markings,

traffic lights etc. for specific situations; requirements should specifydesign parameters, materials, placement, and possible combinations ofdifferent elements (e.g. combination of different signs or combinations ofsigns and markings)

- description of particular exceptions to aforementioned general or specificrequirements

Broad areas to be incorporated in the proposed design manual include:

Guide to Geometric Design of RoadsA. Design Standards and Road Classification. Specific contents include:

(1) Road Standards must deal with standardization process, specificurban areas requirement, and application of standards. (2) RoadClassification based on function of Roads and Traffic requirement. (3)Road Administration covering Access Control, Degree of Control, andApplication of Access Control. (4) Design standards. Selection ofDesign Standards is based on classification.

B. Design Controls and Criteria Specific contents include: (1)Topography. (2) Traffic including Average Daily Traffic, DesignHourly volume and Projection of Traffic. (3) Design vehicle andcharacteristics covering Speed and influence on Capacity of the road.

C. Design Features Comprising Sight distances, horizontal alignment,vertical alignment, and Combination of horizontal and verticalalignment.

D. Cross sectional Elements include: Pavement, Shoulders, Kerbs, Sidewalls, Traffic barrier, Medians, Service roads, Pedestrians crossing,U-turns, Bridges and structures, Bus lay byes, Bus lane, and CycleTracks.

E. Other elements affecting Geometric Design. Specific contentsinclude: Road safety including safety audit, Drainage, Lighting,Signing and Marking, Traffic signals, Environment Impact, andlandscape development.

Guide to Design of at Grades Intersections.Specific contents include: A. Principles of design covering conflicting movements, at grade

intersection layout, factors influencing design, Traffic control and


junction geometry, Capacity, Channelisation, Location, and spacingof intersections.

B. Design Controls mentioning. Priority, Speed and type of intersection. C. Geometric Standards covering: Horizontal / vertical alignment, sight

distances, turning lanes, Islands, openings, and ancillaryconsiderations.

D. Capacity of Intersection including: Capacity of various types ofintersections and Level of service.

E. Other Related Elements including: Requirements for Pedestrians,Drainage, Lighting, Landscaping and Utilities , Sign/marking.Warrants for Traffic Sign, and Capacity calculations.

Traffic Signal DesignSpecific contents include: A. Objectives of traffic signal control. B. Signals installation criteria C. Signal operation requirements including Phasing and Actuation. D. Signal Display and locational aspects, Display requirements Number,

locations, posts, lenses, equipment and material, mountingalternates, Phasing.

E. Traffic Signal Controllers F. Controller configurationG. Actuation, pre-timing location and aspect H. Traffic Signal Timings covering Design principles, Saturation flow,

Cycle times, phasing, Signal setting, and capacity. I. Progressive Signal Timings Actuated signal facilityJ. Area Traffic Control/Urban Traffic Control (UTC).

Design and Implementation of Traffic Control Devices – Traffic Signapplications.Specific contents include: A. Traffic Control Devices B. Purpose, function and requirements C. Effectiveness. D. Traffic Signs covering Function and application, Standardization,

local requirements, Design and location, Requirement for installation,Materials and colours.

E. Various types of signs including: Regulatory Signs, Warning sign,Guide signs, Classification, colour, shape lettering and symbols,Route marker, and their application Guidelines.

Temporary Sings and Work zones ControlSpecific contents include: A. Temporary signs B. Work Zone Control Traffic Control zone C. Planning for Traffic Control (1) Road Safety (2) Convenience (3)

Temporary circulation, diversion arrangement (4) Utility workzone/highway maintenance work zones

D. Function of Control Devices E. Signs, channelisation, marking, flagging F. Typical layout arrangements based on site requirementG. Installation, maintenance, and inspection of Devices.


Design of Cycle TracksSpecific contents include: A. Purpose and various configurations B. Planning for cycle Tracks (1) Route (2) Long term and short term

solutions C. Design Elements covering: Speed, sight distance, horizontal

alignment, grade, cross sectional elements, pavement, Intersectiontreatment, Drainage and application of Traffic Control Devices.

Design of Road Markings and DelineationSpecific contents would include: A. Principles, materials B. Type of marking: Longitudinal, Traverse, Others C. Post mounted delineators

Design of Pavement StructuresSpecific contents include: A. Scope B. Parameters structures elementC. Thickness Design (Design period,Traffic projection, Subgrade CBR,

Design layer thickness). D. Sub base Course Material requirements E. Base Course Material and Mixture requirement F. Binder Course and Wearing Course Material and Mixture G. Design Mix Formulae

Design of Grade Separation CrossingSpecific contents would include: A. Design principles: (1) Traffic and operation (2) Site requirements (3)

Types and highway requirement (4) Stage construction B. Warrants for grade separation (1) Design designation (2) Removal of

hazards (3) Site requirements (4) Traffic volumes and other warrants.C. Grade Separation Structures D. Types, cross section and grade separation without ramps E. General Design consideration F. Determination of type, approaches, spacing, uniformity of patterns,

continuity of route, signing, marking, lane balancing. G. Design Elements including: Weaving sections, exits, ramps capacity,

grading aesthetic, landscaping alignment, lighting, drainage andpublic utilities.

Preparation of Engineering DrawingsSpecific contents would include: A. Introduction B. Drawing requirementC. Sequence of drawings and scales, cover page, index, key plan,

location plan, abbreviations, symbols, curve plan, superelevationplan, typical cross section and pavement details, alignment controlplan, plan and longitudinal profile plan, cross section plan, Junctiondetails, road marking and signs, temporary signs, drainage plan,structure plan, relocation of utilities plan and miscellaneous plans.

D. Drainage numbering plan.


5.7. Establishment of road safety audit

We suggest the following Terms of Reference (based on Jadaan, 1993):- The procedure for the road safety audit should be clear and legally

binding- The description of the procedure should include the reporting - The qualifications of the audit team should be clear. At least one

member of the team should be a road safety engineering specialist.- The road safety audit team and all its members should be independent

of the design team.- The safety audit report should contain the following basic materials:

a. The name of the schemeb. The stage and date of the road safety auditc. The names and qualifications of safety assessors who were involved

in each taskd. A brief description of the existing/proposed route together with its

status e. The date and time of site visits and weather conditions during the

visits.f. List of material that was made available in support of the scheme.g. Assessment of road safety problems and providing plans referenced

to these problems.h. Recommendation of any corrective action that is required in the light

of the assessment.i. A signed and dated statement by the safety audit team to indicate

that they had completed the task.

The report should not include any technical, financial audit, or design teamcomments; with an average length not exceeding 15 pages.

In the implementation of this measure, care should be taken to safeguardthe capacity of the investigative road safety audit team to makeindependent recommendations.

5.8. The construction of a police training institute

In section 5.5 we have given 5 million $ US as a (conservative) estimate forthe construction of a police driver training institute with training ground. Thisestimate is based on the knowledge of the Institute of Traffic Care ofconstruction costs of professional training centres in Europe. It may well bethat costs of ground and construction would be substantially lower inPakistan.

We suggest the following Terms of Reference for the Training Institute:- The training course should be 60% of the time on the circuit or on the

road. Training should be given for different road types; highways, ruralroads, city roads.

- The training should be highly accessible and motivating even forcommercial drivers who have had little or no experience with formaleducation. Basically, the commercial drivers who follow the training willalready have several years of driving experience with a motorcycle, car,or rickshaw, or even minibus or truck. In some ways, these drivers arealready highly skilled.


- The training should be concluded with a driving test in which the drivershows himself capable of avoiding or preventing road hazards. Duringthe driving test, the driver may be asked to explain the meaning of trafficsigns.

- The course should be made mandatory, but at the same time a specialincentive should be attached to participation in the course.

- The instructor should note down in a short report, the strong points andthe weak points of the candidate driver. This report should be discussedwith the driver and should be used as input for the follow-up course.

- One year after the 5-day training course there should be a mandatory 3-day follow-up course.

The objective of the training is to make drivers more aware of safe andeconomical driving, and to eliminate those elements in their driving stylethat may cause danger to themselves or others, or may cause damage orunnecessary wear-and-tear to the vehicle.

The contents of the training course may be:- Basic map reading and route planning- Attitude towards driving and safety of self and others- Special attention to specific road hazards or difficult road situations- Use of mirrors- Correct way of overtaking- Keeping distance- Meaning of signs- Night-time driving- Basic maintenance tasks- Relationship between speeding and distance travelled

The mode of teaching should be mainly:- The instructor models the correct driving behaviour while at the same

time commenting and explaining his perceptive, cognitive operations. Inthis way the candidate driver sees the correct behaviour, but also learnsto understand the underlying perceptual and mental activities that makesafe driving behaviour possible.

- After modelling by the instructor, the candidate driver is invited to drive acertain stretch of the route himself.

The manner of feedback given to pupil drivers should be in accordance withbasic principles of positive feedback.

5.9. A traffic command post

Given the recurrent traffic jams in Lahore, resulting in undisciplined andchaotic traffic scenes, there is clearly a need for a Traffic Command Postthat enables better traffic management. The establishment of professionallines of communication needed for the operation of the Command Postwould also directly benefit traffic enforcement, since a bettercommunication network would enable the traffic police to direct manpowermore quickly to those locations where many violations occur.

We have been informed that the Word Bank is currently financing a projectto set up a command post for the signalised intersection control in Lahore. Itshould be seriously considered to extend this project to include space andequipment for the Traffic Police of Lahore. Currently, the Traffic Police


Lahore is to a large extent held responsible for traffic management on bothsignaled and unsignaled intersections in Lahore. Therefore, it would seemin the normal line of responsibilities to place the intersection signalcommand post under the formal authority of the Traffic Police.

5.10. Road safety campaigns

The campaigns should concentrate on specific problems and specify thedesired behaviours and the circumstances for these behaviours rather thanusing general broad messages (e.g. 'Follow the traffic rules'). The use ofmulti-media and positive role models is essential for the success of thecampaigns.

We suggest that at least three separate campaigns should be organizedabout the following topics:- Importance of the use of reflectors or reflective clothing by pedestrians,

cyclists, motorcyclists, and specific categories of heavy traffic;- Importance of helmet use for the safety of motorcyclists;- Importance of the use of seat belts regardless of the roads.

Of course there may be other topics for campaigns. The most seriousmatters for education and information may deal with (Finnroad, 1997b):- risks of high speed;- lane discipline;- overtaking;- travelling as a passenger;- driving distance;- use of lights and blinkers;- overloading;- crossing a road (pedestrian).The choice of specific campaign topics depends in part on the actuality ofthe road safety problem.

The road safety campaigns should preferably address the need of roadusers for information they can factually use to arrange their own mobility inmore safe and comfortable ways. Therefore, active citizen participation inthe development of the campaigns seems desired. Furthermore, campaignsusing media like television and newspapers will be expensive; sponsorshipfrom national and international firms is desired.

Besides campaigns dealing with specific safety behaviours, policeenforcement of traffic rules, should be accompanied by positive publicityintended to to increase the deterrent effect of the enforcement, while at thesame time generating a more positive attitude towards traffic policing.

Regarding implementation of the campaigns, special attention needs to begiven to the timing and duration. For example, campaign activities mayeasily be ignored during days or months when there are important nationalor religious festivals.

The campaign activities can be evaluated by survey research in order toestablish whether the message of the campaign was clear, and wasreceived well by its intended audience. Pretest research can play a role inthe preparatory campaign phase to test whether the message or slogan of


the campaign is clear and appealing to the target group. It may be thatdifferent ways of communication have to be developed for literate andilliterate road user groups. Media research can test the efficiency ofdifferent communication channels and prevent bad investment.


6. Conclusions

In this report a 6-year (2000-2005) road safety plan has been presented forthe city of Lahore. The elements of the road safety plan were presented at aroad safety seminar in Lahore where endorsement of several elements wasreceived. The main criticisms of the plan concerned its incompleteness incertain respects.

The costs for the total 6-year plan are (roughly and conservatively)estimated to be about 22 million US $. The largest expenditures are for theupgrading of a 35 km road network in central Lahore (estimated 10 millionUS $), the construction of a driver training institute with adequate trainingground (estimated 5 million US $), and the organization of various (3 to 5)road safety and education campaigns (themes: use of reflectors, seat belts,motorcycle helmets, supportive enforcement publicity) (estimated to about3 million US $).

In the first project year there should be more clarity about the budgeting ofthe total plan. Part of the financing should come from the own budgets oforganizations and institutes represented in the steering committee. Forinstance, materials for traffic education on primary schools can be in partsubsidized from the budget of the Ministry of Education. Part of the moneyinvested in the plan can be returned by extra revenue gained from theintroduction of parking zones in Lahore and the intensified enforcement oftraffic rules that makes use of realistic traffic fines. Furthermore, sponsor-ship from national and international firms can be sought to finance certainelements of the plan, such as the setup of road safety campaigns. On-goingevaluation of the elements of the plan, including the introduction of parkingand intensified enforcement of traffic rules, will indicate the extent ofrevenue to be expected in the first phase of the project.

Some elements of the plan, such as the organization of road safetycampaigns, the training of traffic police, and the production of manual, canbe implemented in a well-planned way, since the knowledge to performthese activities is present or can be sought from international institutes orexperts. Again, evaluation is needed to correct swiftly any mistakes orconfusion in starting-up these activities.

Other elements of the plan, such as the updating of legislation or thecentralization and automatization of the licence and vehicle registration, arealready being proposed or even being realized by other organizations or atother levels. In part, the plan is simply the reflection of on-going develop-ments in Pakistan that hopefully will find a fruitful conclusion. For severalsubjects mentioned in the plan, the first initiative lies with other organiza-tions rather than with the steering committee for road safety. Rather thansolely starting new initiatives, the task of the steering committee is often theencouragement and integration of existing developments.

Clearly the plan needs further fine-tuning. The general aims such asorganization of road safety campaigns needs to be specified. For instance,the organization of a special motorcycle helmet campaign requires that wespecify exactly what kind of information about helmets is available and whatis needed, and by what channels to reach the target group. The timing and


the preconditions of the campaign are also essential. One precondition ofthis particular campaign is to have certainty about correct helmet standards,the protective value of helmets, and their commercial availability andaffordability.

Some elements in the present plan may not be feasible in the time-framespecified. For example, we have not separately budgeted the setup of amodern traffic command centre, assuming that a central command post isto be constructed in a separate project.

Thus, the plan presented here is surely ambitious, but the time seems ripefor a positive change in the field of traffic and traffic safety. In the latenineties, at the time of the present project, we see many indications thattraffic and traffic safety are attracting serious attention from politicians andprofessionals as well as from the general public in Pakistan. Many events inthe field of traffic are happening at about the same time: a) the introductionof new legislative proposals to modernize traffic legislation, b) interest intraffic problems on the highest political level of the Punjab as reflected in ameeting with the Prime Minister of the Province of Punjab, c) the recentpositive experiences with police enforcement and publicity on the Lahore-Islamabad motorway, d) the recent foundation of a national road user’sinterest organization (ARUP), e) the emergence of provincial committeesfor traffic management, and f) provincial road safety seminars organized byFinnroad etc.. We hope that the ambition in this plan indeed reflects theambition we have seen in various officials to deal seriously with theproblems of traffic and traffic safety.


7. Literature and documents

Anjum, G.A. and Russell, J.R.E. (1997). Public transport regulation througha government organized NGO: the Faisalabad experience in Pakistan.Transport Reviews, 17, pp. 105-120.

Asian Development Bank (1998). Vulnerable Road Users in the Asian andPacific Region. Asian Development Bank. Manila, Philippines.

Asian Development Bank (1998). Road Safety Guidelines for the Asian andPacific. Traffic Police and Law Enforcement. Region Document 4.11.

Association of Road Users of Pakistan (1999). Healthty Highways - HealthyNations. Leaflet ARUP, Islamabad, Pakistan.

Chief Engineer TEPA and DIG Traffic Police Punjab (1998). IntegratedRoad/Traffic Improvement Plan Lahore.

Committee On Traffic Management in Punjab (1998). Recommendations ofthe Committee/Working Group On Traffic Management in Punjab.Memorandum Part II.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Traffic Punjab (1998a). Organisationand Analysis Of Traffic Management In Punjab. Memorandum

Deputy Inspector General of Traffic Police of the Punjab (1998b). BriefingJuly 1998. Briefing to the Chief Minister of the Province of the Punjab.

Deputy Inspector General of Traffic Police of the Punjab (1998c). Briefing tothe Chief Minister Punjab on Controlling and Regulating Traffic in UrbanAreas.

Downing, A. (1988). The effectiveness of a retraining programme for busdrivers in Pakistan. In: J.A. Rothengatter and R.A. de Bruin (Eds.), RoadUser Behaviour. Theory and Research. Va Gorcum, Assen, TheNetherlands.

Downing, A.J., Baguley, C.J. and Hills, B.L. (1991). Road Safety inDeveloping Countries: An Overview. In PTRC, Proceedings of Seminar C,Towards Safer Roads in Developing Countries. University of Sussex, 9-13September 1991, England.

Fazil, M.U. (1996). A paper on heavy vehicles in Pakistan. Paper presentedat the Second Conference on Asian Road Safety, Beijing, China, 31stOctober 1996.

Feenstra (1997). Bicycle planning in Calcutta: A must for a livable future.Faculty of Spatial Sciences, University of Groningen, The Netherlands.

Finnroad (1996). Road safety study of Provincial Highways Project.Inception report. Report published December 1996 by Finnroad Oy,


ADCON Engineering and the National Transport Research Centre,Islamabad, Pakistan.

Finnroad (1997a). Pilot Study Report annex to Quarterly Progress Report 1-98. No. 10, September 1997. Report for the Road Safety Study ofProvincial Highways Project. Published by Finnroad Oy, ADCONEngineering and National Transport Research Centre, Islamabad, Pakistan.(Containing the section on driving schools).

Finnroad (1997b). Annual Progress Report. December 1997. No. 13. Reportfor the Road Safety Study of Provincial Highways Project. Published byFinnroad Oy, ADCON Engineering and National Transport ResearchCentre, Islamabad, Pakistan.

Finnroad (1998a). Pilot Study Report annex to Quarterly Progress Report 1-98. No. 14, January-March 1998. Report for the Road Safety Study ofProvincial Highways Project. Published by Finnroad Oy, ADCONEngineering and National Transport Research Centre, Islamabad, Pakistan.

Finnroad (1998b). Annual Progress Report. December 1998. No. 17 (??).Report for the Road Safety Study of Provincial Highways Project. Publishedby Finnroad Oy, ADCON Engineering and National Transport ResearchCentre, Islamabad, Pakistan.

Goldenbeld, Ch. (1995), Police enforcement: theory and practice. In: PTRCEducation and Research Services, Traffic Management and Road Safety.Proceedings of Seminar G. PTRC Education and Services LTD, London,United Kingdom.

Goldenbeld, Ch. (1996). Measures to increase traffic law acceptance: somestrategic considerations. Report presented at the 5th European workshop“New developments in traffic safety research”, Bern, Switzerland, May 2-3,1996.

Goldenbeld, Ch. and Noordzij, P.C. (1996). Towards safer roads. Non-technical measures to improve road safety. Paper presented at the seminar“Black Spots” in Wisla, Poland, April 15-20, 1996.

Granberg/Viatek (1996). Via Baltica Road Safety Audit. Helsinki, Finland.

Haddeland, J. & Granberg, T. (1999). Provincial Road Safety TrainingSeminar. Training seminars given in Quetta, Karachi, Peshawar, Lahore,Hyderabad in the period 9-12-98 to 31-03-99.

Haddeland, J. (1999). Memorandum 03-03-99 for the Road Safety Study ofProvincial Highways Project. Islamabad, Pakistan.

Haddeland, J. and Granberg, T. (1999). Manual for low-costcountermeasures for accident black spots, Pakistan, June 1999. Inpreparation. Islamabad, Pakistan.


Jadaan, K.S. (1993). Road Safety Audit Process: An Accident PreventionTechnique. In: Proceedings of the Conference on Asian Road safety 1993,25-28th October 1993, Crown Princess Hotel, Kuala Lumpur.

Koivisto, I. (1997). Education and Information. First report April, 1997.Report delivered for the Road Safety Study of Provincial Highways Project.Published by Finnroad Oy, ADCON Engineering and National Transport Re-search Centre, Islamabad, Pakistan.

Khan, K. (1999). Network safety issues. Presentation delivered to theWorkshop 'The road safety Component of the Lahore Urban Transportproject', 17 April 9:30 hrs-16:00 hrs held at the Four Seasons Restaurant,Gulberg.

Lahore Development Authority/Metropolitan Planning Wing (1980). LahoreUrban Development and Traffic Study. Final Report/Volume 1-A/Volume 1-B. World Bank, IDA, Lahore, Pakistan.

Meakin, R. (1998). Lahore Public Transportation Policy & Institution Study.Final Report. Report prepared for the South Asia Department of WorldBank.

National Transport Research Centre (1981). The effect of enforcement onroad user's behaviour. Report NTRC, Islamabad, Pakistan

Muhlrad, N. (1996). Integrated road safety management: Inter-sectoralpolicies and institutional organization. In: D. Mohan and N. Muhlrad (Eds.),Introduction to road traffic safety: A multidisciplinary approach. InternationalCourse on Prevention and Control of Traffic Accidents and Injuries. Delhi,India.

National Transport Research Centre (1981). Bus driver training pilot study.NTRC Report 62. Islamabad, Pakistan.

National Transport Research Centre (1983). Road Accidents in Pakistan.NTRC-report 64. Islamabad, Pakistan.

Noordzij, P. (1988), The role of traffic rules, In: SWOV Institute for RoadSafety Research, A century of automobiles: Past, present and future ofautomotive safety, SWOV, Leidschendam, Netherlands.

OECD (1984). Integrated road safety programmes. Report prepared by anOECD scientific expert group. OECD, France, Paris Cedex.

Office of the Inspector General of Police Punjab (1995). Establishment ofspecialised traffic cadre in the Punjab Police. Official memorandum byInpector General of Police Punjab, M.A. Khan, 30th March, 1995.

Population Census Organization Statistics Division of the Government ofPakistan (1998). Population and Housing Census of Pakistan 1998. CensusBulletin-1. Provisional Results. Islamabad, Pakistan.

Rai, Fuad Hameed dr. (1999). Traffic Health Hazards. Paper presented atPresentation delivered to the Workshop 'The road safety Component of the


Lahore Urban Transport project', 17 April 9:30 hrs-16:00 hrs held at theFour Seasons Restaurant, Gulberg.

Ross, A. (1990). Working Paper 3. Road safety in Lahore. An Overview.June 1990. Paper prepared for TEPA as part of the HFA (Halcrow Fox andAssociates) documentation on the IRBD financed Lahore Traffic andTransport component of the Punjab Urban Development Project.

Sayer, I.A. and A. Downing (1981). Driver knowledge of road safety factorsin three developing countries. Transport and Road Research Laboratory,Crowthorne, Berkshire, United Kingdom

Sayer, I.A., Baguley, C.J., and Downing, A.J. (1991). Low-cost engineeringmeasures in Egypt, Ghana and Pakistan. Paper from the Overseas UnitTransport and Road Research Laboratory. Crowthorne, Berkshire, UnitedKingdom.

Sayer, I.A. and Downing, A. (1981). Driver knowledge of road safety factorsin three developing countries. Supplementary report 713. Transport andRoad Research Laboratory. Crowthorne, Berkshire, UK.

Sayer, I.A. and Downing, A.J (1996). Pedestrian accidents and road safetyeducation in selected developing countries. TRL Report 227. Crowthorne,berkshire, United Kingdom.

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Shafique, S.M. (1999a). The Traffic problem in Lahore. Paper presented tothe Workshop 'The road safety Component of the Lahore Urban Transportproject' , 17 April 9:30hrs-15:30hrs held at the Four Seasons Restaurant,Gulberg.

Shafique, S.M. (1999b). Letter to Mr. C. Goldenbeld in reaction to draftreport "A plan for the Road Safety Component of the Lahore Urban Trans-port Project, 23 April 1999.

Southgate, P. and Mirrlees-Black, C. (1991). Traffic policing in changingtimes. Home Office Research Study No. 124. London, United Kingdom.

Swati, M.S. (1980). The real problem of highway safety in Pakistan. Report43. National Transport Research Centre, Islamabad, Pakistan.

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Waqar-ul-Haq, M. (1998). Manual of Motor Vehicle Laws. Nadeem LawBook House, Lahore, Pakistan.

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8. Background studies

8.1. Analyses of traffic in Pakistan and Lahore

Lahore TrafficThe traffic scenes in Lahore are diverse indeed. Lahore is an amalgam of:- The traditional old city with the 18th century mix of narrow and broad

streets, a constant high level of congestion and encroachment, and arelatively large percentage of non-motorized traffic (pedestrians, cyclists,animal-driven cards) with an average speed about walking pace.

- Neglected, badly maintained roads where motorized traffic, includingheavy traffic, drives with high speed (e.g. Multan Road)

- Recently reconstructed roads (e.g. Main Boulevard Gulberg, Mall Road)with still traffic problems

- Newly developed areas such as Defense with a good road infrastructure

There are some general characteristics of the traffic system in Lahore:

1. Mix of slow and fast-moving trafficLike most metropolitan Asian cities, Lahore traffic is characterized by a mixof slow- and fast moving traffic. In a comprehensive traffic study of Lahoretraffic, the traffic composition was described as follows: “Motor cyclesaccount for over half of the motorized vehicles licensed in Lahore, and cars,taxis, etc. for a little over a quarter. Over the past five years the number ofmotorcycles licensed have increased at almost, 20% per annum, twice therate of increase for private cars.” (LDA/MPW, 1980; p. 62). “Existing trafficflows comprise a wide range of vehicle types with varying characteristicsand requirements. This, coupled with the number of animals that roam atlarge throughout the city, and the generally poor standard of driverbehaviour, leads to a very inefficient and hazardous use of available roadspace.” (LDA/MPW, 1980; p. 63).

2. Roads combining access and flow functionsAlmost all shops and factories in Lahore are along the major roads, theeconomic idea being that a shop should be easily accessible for potentialclients who can drive on the road, stop immediately in front of the shop, andstep out of their car into the shop. Undoubtedly, the spirit of givingmaximum service to the client, and the forces of economical competition,have contributed to this development. This state of affairs is also rooted in arich historical mercantile tradition where major shops, bazaars, andprocessions have always been alongside the major roads. Besides thecommercial institutions, the concentration of primary and secondary schoolsalongside main roads is also very high. On Main Boulevard there are easily11 schools within the space of only a few kilometres. The concentration ofschools alongside G-road is at least as dense. According to the law, thepresence of these schools should be marked by a school zone (which is notdone).


However, from a modern traffic management point of review, this situationis to be deplored. It is a well-known tenet in traffic management science thaturban roads should be categorized in different types, and that each type ofroad should have one main function. One important function of roads is theflow function: to provide easy, smooth flow of large traffic volumes withrelatively high speeds. Another function of roads is to provide access tospecific places like shops, and small streets. If a road combines both flowand access functions it means, in effect, that it will not perform either ofthese functions according to design standard. A large part of the major roadnetwork in Lahore combines flow and access functions, resulting in asituation where traffic management at certain peak times and placesbecomes difficult indeed.

From this analysis, it is easy to understand the pivotal role the traffic policeplays in the traffic management in the city. When, at certain times andplaces, the traffic system cannot regulate itself anymore and the traffic bogsdown in congestion, public irritation, and undisciplined behaviour; the trafficpolice are the only agency to restore some semblance of order to thesystem.

3. High concentration of commercial traffic Lahore traffic is predominantly (80%) commercial traffic: transport ofpersons and goods in direct relation to economic necessities. In fact thismeans that economic imperatives and developments are dominant forces inshaping the future course of the Lahore traffic system.

4. Scarcity of transport meansIn 1980 there was still a fairly well-working public transport system inLahore: “Nearly two-thirds of the total passenger movement into the centralarea is carried by public transport. Buses carry about half of this volume,mini-buses a third, and rickshaws the balance. Private cars and motorcyclesbetween them carry less than a quarter of the total numbers entering thecentral area.” (LDA/MPW, 1980; p 63).

Through mis-management, the public transport system was abolished forthe most part in the eighties, and the resulting vacuum in transport marketwas filled up by private sector which is now, for the most part, catering tothe transport demand in Lahore city. Indeed, the necessity of the LahoreUrban Transport Project is the consequence of a basic economic fact: good,fast, and cheap transport is a scarce economic resource.

5. Substandard design or construction of roadsA short inspection of some of the roads and intersections in Lahore revealseveral striking examples of road layout that is decidedly sub-standard. Oneof the main arteries in Lahore city is the (in 1998) finished Main BoulevardGulberg. There are several substandard elements in the road layout. Toname the most important:- No stop lines on main intersections - Service roads entering on to a roundabout (e.g. Liberty Market

roundabout) and in main intersections- Inadequately placed signs indicating road work in progress- Inadequately placed signs indicating pedestrian crossings


- Lay-out point of zebra crossings is invisible- Unnecessary broad carriageways- Nonsensical yellow parallel lines- Inadequate alignment- Inadequate traffic islands for pedestrians.- Inadequate use of service roads- Absence of facilities for pedestrians and public transport

This lack of basic elements of road layout has contributed to the poor use ofthe broad street width. Different types of vehicle are constantly overtakingone another. Bikes overtake pedestrians; bikes are being overtaken byrickshaws, rickshaws by motorcycles etc., resulting in only one effectivetraffic lane – the right lane - for motorized high speed traffic whereas undermore disciplined circumstances two traffic lanes would be available formotorized traffic.

6. Lack of basic maintenanceIn the past there has been a lack of coordination between severalgovernment departments. As a result, roads sometimes were broken upright after construction for sanitation or electricity purposes. However, thisproblem has been partially recognized and is now being addressed by theCentral Coordinating Committee (representatives of WASA, WAPDA, LDA,TEPA, SWEGAS) which meets every Monday under the Chairmanship ofthe Mayor himself.

In a thorough urban planning study of 1980, the road network was alsounder review. The description of the road network seems still valid today:“An adequate network of main roads exists throughout most of the city, andcongestion is not generally severe with traffic moving freely throughout theday. In specific central area locations, congestion is experienced, althoughthis may be attributed not so much to a lack of road space but to thecomposition and behaviour of traffic on the road. Most of the traffic iscarried on relatively few major roads; over half enters the central area onseven routes and these are constructed, in the main, to sufficientstandards.” (LDA/Metropolitan Planning Wing, 1980; p. 62).

“Elsewhere the quality and adequacy of local roads varies immensely, andin many areas no suitable surfaced roads are available. The standard ofmaintenance, provision of lighting, pedestrian facilities, and surface waterdrainage are inadequate generally.” (LDA/MPW, 1980; p. 62).

Growth of population and trafficSince several years now there has been a strong migration trend from ruralareas towards the Metropolitan Area of Lahore (Table 8.1 illustrates thegrowth in Lahore district). People migrate to Lahore for all the services andopportunities they cannot find anymore in the rural areas, e.g.: - jobopportunities, health care, education, housing, basic mobility, cheap foods.


LahoreDistrict

Households Male Female Total Comparison1981

1981-1998Average Annual

Growth Rate

Rural 151,651 567,882 515,619 1,083,501 556,456 399

Urban 749,907 2,695,022 2,434,192 2,988,486 2,988,486 323

Total 901,558 3,262,904 2,949,811 6,212,715 3,544,942 335

Table 8.1. Results of the 1998-Census for the Lahore District (Source:Population Census Organization Statistics Division Government of Pakistan(1998).

Not surprisingly the growth rate in population has also launched a largegrowth rate in motorized traffic (Table 8.2).

Year Car/ jeep Motorcycle Truck Deliv.Van

Bus Taxi Rickshaw Others Total Animal GrandTotal

80 17106 36142 1949 653 2327 710 7597 3858 70342 9040 79382

81 21746 25348 1848 894 2267 1950 9270 3402 92725 9060 102785

82 24652 64259 2065 1142 2445 2028 9895 4512 110998 8940 119938

83 26302 68771 2543 1352 2795 2239 9738 7142 120882 8840 129722

84 33621 74973 2325 1553 2365 1904 9302 7450 133493 8240 141733

85 40939 81174 2106 1753 1935 1568 8865 7757 146097 8640 154737

86 40230 104367 1976 3313 2043 635 6805 10416 169785 8540 178325

87 46977 108319 2340 3402 2512 461 8296 11785 184092 8240 192332

88 52724 112271 2703 3491 2981 287 9787 13154 198398 8240 206638

89 56583 117442 2480 3465 2331 237 8891 13753 205002 8240 213242

90 61633 143439 2544 3678 2402 602 9270 14575 238143 8240 246383

91 65828 152311 2763 3085 2799 1080 9473 21391 258730 8240 266070

92 70022 161184 2982 2491 3197 1557 9676 28206 279315 8240 287555

93 74217 170056 3201 1898 3594 2035 9869 35022 299902 8240 308142

94 83816 194778 3568 21082 5728 2487 10051 18463 339973 8240 338213

95 150452 294420 6955 32188 12841 7280 14348 20177 538660 8240 541901

96 217087 394061 10342 43293 19954 12073 18645 21891 737346 8240 745586

Table 8.2. Number of vehicles on road in Lahore (Source: Punjab Bureau of Statistics or Excise andTaxation Department).

The estimated growth rates of the vehicle park in Lahore have been:Period 1980-1990: 12,9% (Development statistic of Punjab, Punjab Bureauof Statistics).Period 1990-1996: 20,7% (Excise & Taxation Department, Government ofPunjab).Period 1980-1996: 15,8% (Comprehensive Study on Transportation Systemin Lahore (Progress Report), 1991, TEPA, LDA.


Between 1986 and 1997, the volume of traffic has quadrupled (Table 8.2).In 1999 the total number of registered vehicles is estimated to be over900.000.

Specific problems Lahore situationShavique (1994) lists the major traffic problems in Lahore as follows:1. Mix of slow moving and fast moving traffic2. Encroachment along the roadside (traders, road side fruit markets,

construction material, car show rooms)3. Insufficient parking places (especially near shopping plazas and newly

erected office buildings)4. Poor road engineering (especially absence of road markings, road signs,

bus bays, proper drainage system, slip roads on main crossings)5. Insufficient stands for PSVs6. Disturbances created by processions on busy roads (e.g. Mall Road)7. Shortage of traffic staff.

In 1998 a special committee of experts reviewed the state of affairs inregard to traffic management in the province of the Punjab (Committee onTraffic Management in Punjab, 1998). The engineering working group ofthis committee summarized the traffic problems in the Punjab as follows: - inadequate defective roads;- lack of sufficient traffic signals;- lack of arterial roads and road classification;- operation of fruit and vegetable markets in congested areas in urban

cities;- non-existence of separate roads for slow moving and fast moving

vehicles;- lack of underpasses and overhead bridges.

In 1999, a number of these measures are in the ‘pipeline’:- The Lahore Ring Road - Negotiations with the Unions about a new Urban Transport system- Phasing out of slow-moving traffic from certain areas- Several flyovers and underpasses are planned

A recent analysis of the traffic in Lahore describes it as “generallydisorderly”. The factors held responsible for the disorder are (Meakin, 1998;p. 2):- a low level of application of traffic management measures;- undisciplined behaviour of road users;- poor mechanical condition of vehicles;- conflict between the various constituents of the traffic mix of

pedestrians, cycles, motor vehicles, and animal-drawn vehicles;- encroachment of road space by utility poles, frontage traders,

construction activity, as well as potholes and uncovered manholes;- poor road drainage causing pools of rain water to lie for many days;- traffic police who are poorly trained (or untrained) in traffic control

techniques, inadequately equipped, and who give priority to checkingvehicle documents above enforcing traffic rules.


Analyses of traffic behaviour The behaviour of road users and road safety is only partly the result oftraffic law and enforcement. For a large part it is the direct reaction to road,traffic and vehicle conditions, which enables a certain range of behaviour.Part of this range may be safe and another part unsafe or not allowed bytraffic law. This range is created through the design of roads, the applicationof traffic signs and signals, as well as through the design and condition ofvehicles.

"The traffic in Pakistan is one of the most chaotic and undisciplined amongthe developing countries. Hardly anybody seems to pay any attention totraffic safety rules and everybody drives in any manner he pleases. Theextent of speeding and reckless driving and other moving violations issimply frightening. There is total lack of driving courtesy as everybody triesto be ahead of everybody else. Nobody pays any heed to traffic signs,signals, and road markings which have been installed and being maintainedat a very high cost. The extent of one-way violations, even on high speeddual-carriage ways, is of alarming proportions. There is a total absence oflane discipline and hardly anybody gives right-of-way if he could get awaywith it. It is a common sight to see overtaking in the face of comingvehicles, on curves, at stop sign, in no overtaking zones. Use of horns isvery high, even in the designated silence zones. Nobody seems to care asto where he parks the vehicle, as long as he can find a place on the road orfootpath for his vehicle. It is a common site to see double and triple parkingon all busy streets. The extent of lighting violations at night-time is so highthat the night-time driving has become extremely hazardous." (NationalTransport Research Centre, 1981).

According to an observation study in eight Pakistani cities, the mostcommon (and dangerous) violations of traffic rules in Pakistan are(Finnroad, 1998b):1. Speeding2. Driving in the centre of the road (or not caring about lane marking)3. Driving distance too close4. Force merging into main road5. Driving in wrong direction on dualised roads 6. Wrong overtaking (too close or when opposing traffic)7. Vehicle parked in wrong direction/place8. Disregard of stop sign9. Driving on shoulders10. Right turn from left lane (or vice versa)11. Reversing without due care12. U-turn without due care

As a result of driving too close, Pakistan has a lot more accidents betweenvehicles driving in the same direction (nose-to-tail or side-swipe). As aresult of dangerous overtaking and neglect of lane markings, Pakistan hasalso a lot more head-on-collisions than other countries (Finnroad, 1998b).

It is very clear that transport vehicles, buses, and mini-buses are involvedin a large proportion of accidents. Not surprisingly the call for better controlof driving behaviour of professional drivers has been repeatedly made, e.g.:


“The control of licensing, follow-up of companies and strict enforcementshould be priority number one”. (Finnroad, 1996; appendix 3.2)

The general description of undisciplined, rule-ignoring traffic behaviour ofthe Pakistani driver has been repeated in several reports to describe thetypical driving behaviour of the Lahori drivers:“The drivers of private motor vehicles, especially cars, behave carelesslyand selfishly, which leads to speeding, excessive lane changing, dangerousovertaking, and a general neglect of traffic rules and regulations, eventraffic signals. The trucks use their size and horns to make their way. Thebus drivers race in competition towards the stops where they idle in asundisciplined clumps. The cyclists take every opportunity for a shortcut,driving against the flow of traffic, and the pedestrians walk across the roadswithout taking any notice of other traffic or pedestrian crossings.” (VTS,1987b; p. 23).

“The most frequent causes of road accidents are related to driver behaviourand, in most cases, arise from the inability of a driver to cope with the roadenvironment or traffic conditions at a particular point in time. In Lahore, thismay arise from a number of underlying factors such as inadequate drivingskill/knowledge or, equally likely, inadequate traffic engineering design offacilities or chaotic traffic conditions. The greatest scope for improvementof road safety undoubtedly lies in bringing about improved driver behaviour.This, in the long term requires sustained efforts to improve driver trainingand driver education, but can also be brought about through more effectivetraffic police enforcement and improvements in the road environment toease, or simplify, driving tasks and decisions at high risk locations, and bythe reduction of unnecessary conflicts between road users.” (Ross, 1990; p.16).

According to the police accident registration the major contributory factor toroad accidents is also behaviour rather than conditions of road, vehicle, orweather (Table 8.3). It should be kept in mind, however, that there may beconsiderable bias in these statistics towards behavioural factors.

Accident cause Number of accidents

Rash & Negligent Driving 2899

Mechanical Fault 322

Bad road condition 478

Bad weather condition 75

Table 8.3. Registered accident causes in the period 1994-1998 (Source: Statistics Traffic Police Lahore).

The aforementioned analyses of road user behaviour are valid, but are alsoto a certain extent one-sided. While Lahori drivers indeed violate trafficrules to a large extent, they adhere to their own set of informal rules:


- concentrate on traffic in front- priority rules seem to be that vehicle slightly in front (rather than from

the right) must be given priority - honk to warn other drivers of your presence and your overtaking- do not brake suddenly- car drivers always try to swerve towards the best lane, being the

extreme right lane rather than the left lane

The Lahori drivers are very skilled in using rather small margins of space toovertake or to mingle with other traffic. The major element of predictabilityis that sudden braking is not likely to occur since many drivers seek solutionto potential conflicts by using narrow margins whenever possible. In fact,there is a system where lane keeping doesn't function at all, since thepredominant mode of conflict resolution is lateral forward or obliquemovement. So-called road improvement by widening roads, even tends tostimulate this behaviour in the sense that even more space is created forlateral collision-avoiding movement.

Specific contributory factors to accidents The fatal accidents that do happen have often to do with specificcircumstances in which even these well-honed skills of the Lahori driversare not enough to avert serious accident. These circumstances are:- long hours of professional driving (> 12 hours);- unprofessional drivers of commercial vehicles; - road design not guiding inexperienced drivers new to the Lahore scene;- high speed, aggressive driving style under economical pressures;- potholes particularly during night time driving; - construction sites with inadequate signing and facilities for diversion of

traffic;- police pickets that are not indicated by lights during the night;- broad streets which take more than 10 seconds to pass and with no

traffic islands for pedestrians.

Problems caused by heavy trafficA large part of Lahore traffic is commercial traffic. Special mention shouldbe made of the problems created by a special category of commercialtraffic, the heavy vehicles. The problem of overloaded heavy vehicles is ageneral problem in developing countries. Fazil (1996) sums up some of thespecific sources of unsafety caused by traffic of heavy vehicles. Heavyvehicles are often not equipped with conspicuous warning lights orindicators on the rear, or reflective sides. Also, there is unsecured loadingof commodities. Especially dangerous is the handling of protruding cargo,e.g. iron bars, wide and bulky loads of steel scraps. And, of course, the mixbetween heavy and light vehicles creates dangers on its own.

Besides overloading, the type of loading also may be dangerous. Asreported by Shafique (1999b) long vehicles loaded with steel bars andtractor trolleys having loads which are expanded more than three feets oneach side are involved in accidents, particularly during the night after 10:00pm. Shafique describes one accidents as follows: "Last year one fatalaccident in Lahore took place because the iron bars were about 6 feet over-and-above the length of the tractor trolley, and a car driver could not see it


because there was no red or yellow light for indication. The iron barspierced through the wind screen and killed all four occupants of the carincluding the driver." (Shafique, 1999b).

Obstacles on roadsBesides badly indicated road construction work sites, another source ofdanger comes from police pickets. As Shafique rightly points out, policepickets normally cover the half of the right-of- way of the roads without anyindication by lights, and speedy vehicles may strike against the barricades.

8.2. Review of safety initiatives and legislation

Review of recent road safety initiativesThere have been a number of important recent initiatives in the field ofPakistan and Lahore traffic that have relevance for the safety issues. Theseare:1. A new legislative proposal for the nation, the “National Highways Safety

Ordinance” attempts to provide for safe driving on the NationalHighways in Pakistan.

2. On the provincial level, the Road Usage Bill 1998 attempts to provide foran updated traffic law legislation for the province of the Punjab.

3. The Deputy Inspector General of the Traffic Police Punjab hasformulated several briefings to the Chief Minister of the Province inwhich issues of functioning and effectiveness of traffic law enforcementhave been discussed and specific recommendation have been made toincrease this efficiency.

4. In collaboration between the Traffic Police Lahore and the TrafficEngineering and Planning Agency (TEPA) an “Integrated Road/TrafficImprovement Plan Lahore” has been formulated.

These recent initiatives, at different administrative levels, show that interestin traffic problems, including safety problems, is certainly present. Theproposals and recommendation in these different initiatives make a lot ofsense, and show that there is an awareness of the several factorscontributing to the problems.

What is essentially lacking is a multi-year traffic policy plan approved of atthe provincial or national level. A policy that clearly points out priorities andmentions specific targets and a time-frame for implementation would bringmore coherence in various initiatives and give them a much-needed,shared frame of reference. Also, a traffic policy with ambitious and realisticquantitative targets, would make evaluation of activities possible. In mostplans or initiatives, little or no attention is given to the possible role ofresearch in developing new measures or evaluating already implementedmeasures. Furthermore, there may be more attention in the proposals topossible funding mechanisms in the field of traffic itself.

The problem-analyses of traffic in Pakistan (Swati, 1980), Punjab(Committee Traffic Management, 1998) and in Lahore (TEPA, 1991;Shafique, 1994) show much insight, and the recommendations givencertainly point towards promising directions. In this plan for the road safetyof Lahore, we have taken over some of the recommendations given. From


a scientific point of view, the analyses are not quite satisfactory. In general,there is a lack of attention to the issue of monitoring developments in trafficby studies of traffic counts, volumes etc.

Part of the monitoring of traffic that is particularly relevant for road safety,the reliable registration of accidents, receives scant or no attention. In short,analysis of the problems based on reliable data is scarce. Again, like someother issues we have described, this could originate from an old problem-solving tradition of Pakistan culture, where high-level talks about a problemare considered more relevant to problem-analysis than mere sheets ofresearch data and figures. However, the old modes of dispute settlementand political decision-making should be supplemented with more attentionto the collection and analysis of research data.

Pakistan, Punjab, and Lahore are probably only at the very start of a sharpincrease in motorization growth, and in commercial and public transportdemands. Scientific research can detect the possible future shape of thingsto come and give clear warning indications. Continuous monitoring ofcrucial traffic parameters like volumes, accidents, pollution measures, willindicate the direction the system is heading, and the time left forimplementing effective measures. Based on a monitoring system, scientificpredictions can be made how the traffic system will evolve over time.Based on these predictions, high level officials should make their decisionsabout changes or improvements to the system.

Review of legislationEssentially, traffic rules are prescriptions given by the government to directthe behaviour of road users, with the additional power to force penalties onroad users who violate these rules.

The promotion of traffic safety by law only, is dependent upon certaingeneral conditions (e.g. Noordzij, 1988; Goldenbeld, 1996):- Complying with traffic rules should result in a lower risk than no

compliance;- Traffic rules are well known and clear;- The rules are also followed by a large majority in practice;- There is a substantial risk of detection;- The severity of penalty is high enough to have a deterrent effect;- When violating the rule the risk of accident is high;- The advantages when committing an offence are minor.

The purpose of this section is to review the Pakistani traffic laws andattendant penalties, and to offer some suggestions that may be useful inincreasing the acceptance of traffic laws and rules.

In Pakistan, legislation with regard to road safety stems back from thecolonial time. The Highway Code, which has a legal status in Pakistan, asopposed to a mere advisory status in some other countries, is from 1977.

In Pakistan there legal rules for traffic are laid down in four basicdocuments:


- The Motor Vehicles Ordinance 1965- The West Pakistan Motor Vehicles Rules 1969- The Pakistan Highway Code- Special Ordinances by the Prime Minister

Most of the regulations are described in the Manual of Motor Vehicles Laws.Given the old tradition of the legislation and the changes in traffic and trafficenforcement, there is much to be said for introducing a new road safety actwhich is better attuned to the demands of the road system and to modernday traffic policing operations.

In his briefing on traffic problems to the Chief Minister of the Punjab, theDIG/Traffic Punjab recommended a new updated law for all road users.Part of the shortcoming of the Motor Vehicles Act 1965 (MVA 65) areaddressed in the new draft Road Usage Bill 1998 (see Table 8.4). Incontrast to the MVA 65, the Road Usage Bill also covers the regulationsgoverning the behaviours of pedestrians, cyclists, animal drawn vehicles,and animal herders. However, the draft has yet to be politically approved.

Motor Vehicles Ordinance 1965 Road Usage Bill 1998

Animal drawn vehicles not covered Driver of animal drawn card will also requirelicense

3 years of driving experience required beforegrant of heavy vehicle license

5 years of driving experience required beforegrant of heavy vehicle license

Fitness certificate for transport vehicleeffective for three years

Fitness certificate for transport vehicleeffective for one year

Seat belt use not mandatory outsidemotorways

An enabling provision has been provided forframing of rules for the construction ofvehicles and the use of safety belts

Government or authorized agency maydetermine the places at which public servicesvehicles may stop for a longer time than isnecessary for taking up and setting down ofpassengers

Parking places and halting stations shall bedetermined in concurrence with and on therecommendations of, the DistrictSuperintendent of Police concerned.

Government or authorised authority maycause or permit traffic signs to be placed orerected in any public place for the purpose ofregulating motor vehicle traffic.

Right-of-way shall be clearly indicated andmarked at each intersection of a road.

Duty to obey traffic signals only described fordrivers of road vehicles

Duty to obey traffic signals extended topedestrians, cyclists, drivers of animal-drawncards

Fines for driving at excessive speed 100 Rsfor private drivers and 500 Rs for drivers oftransport vehicles

Fines for driving at excessive speed between2000-5000 Rs. and for drivers of transportvehicles 10000-15000Rs.

Penalty for driving recklessly max 500 Rs.and max 6 month imprisonment

Fine 5000-15000 Rs. and max 6 month im-prisonment

Table 8.4. Comparison MVO 65 and Road usage Bill on major points.

In general, the Road Usage Bill 1998 represents a definite improvementupon the old legislation contained in MVO 1965 and MVR 1969. The mainimprovements can be described in four categories:


- Coverage of all road users;- Better description of specific responsibilities of both police and road

authorities;- More sharply described administrative procedures in the fields of license

registration, public carriers’ permits; - Penalties that are adjusted to modern day economics.

Like many other plans and proposals the Road Usage Bill is in the political‘pipeline’. One of our recommendations is that the Bill will pass politicalscrutiny to be enacted in the short term.

Pakistan Highway CodeThe Highway Code in Pakistan is a document with a legal status. Basically,the Highway Code is a sound document giving appropriate behaviouralguidance for most of the traffic situations to be found. Very recently theHighway Code was modernized and printed in a new edition by theMotorway Police. This document in itself, or parts of it, could be used well intraffic safety education in schools.

Of course the Highway Code could be further improved. Not all trafficsituations are covered, e.g. behaviour on U-turn. The specific use of serviceroads and slip roads should be explained.

Furthermore, the Highway Code should give some specific behaviouralguidelines for motorcyclists and rickshaws. These vehicle types can operatein smaller spaces than cars and tend to do so. It could be considered to giveguidelines as to proper conduct in driving these vehicles. Some specialguidelines could also be given for the operation of heavy vehicles,especially for right turn manoeuvres.

Further possibilities for improvementPakistan, like many other countries, has a set of laws and rules that wereconceived several years ago when traffic was not yet fully developed. Arevision of traffic law legislation may be used to:1. Introduce rules for new situations or vehicle types that were not covered

by the old law2. Enhance the acceptance of traffic laws.

According to Noordzij (1988), the effectiveness of any set of traffic rulescan be improved in a number of ways, starting with the revision of separaterules. Each rule should be checked to assess whether the situations towhich it refers are outdated, whether the arguments for the prescribedbehaviour still hold, and whether this behaviour can be prescribed in moredetail.

A more fundamental decision pertains to the question of whether thePakistani traffic rules should continue their function as the mostcomprehensive and authoritative set of prescriptions for the behaviour ofroad users. If this function is to be continued, several improvements can bemade:


1. The Pakistani traffic rules could be made more accessible by presentingthem in separate sections, based on different modes of transport, anddifferent types of roads.

2. The Pakistani traffic rules could be presented more convincingly bystarting with a number of articles explaining the intentions of the rules ingeneral terms, and by providing arguments for individual rules.This could be completed with some form of priority ranking, which islikely to lead to better compliance with the most important rules. It couldeven be considered to include rules that do not carry the threat of apenalty if violated. Compliance could be further improved by translatingthe legal rules into action patterns that can be taught.

Introduction of the ticket systemEspecially relevant for the effectiveness of police enforcement of trafficrules are the legislative changes in regard to the processing of trafficviolations by challans or tickets.

In 1969, a legal provision for a ticket system was made. The West PakistanMotor Vehicles Amendment Ordinance 1969 authorised a police officer notbelow the rank of an Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police to charge on thespot, any person committing (within his view) one of the following offences(mentioned in the Fifth Schedule of the West Pakistan Motor VehiclesOrdinance 1965): driving when disqualified, failing to stop on theoccurrence of an accident, applying for a licence without giving particularsof endorsement, driving recklessly, driving while drunk or under theinfluence of any drug, taking part in an unauthorized race, using an alteredlicence, driving without a license, allowing a license to be used by anotherperson, driving at excessive speed, driving when mentally of physically unfitto drive, refusing to produce a license, failing to stop when required, drivingan unregistered vehicle, driving a transport vehicle not covered by acertificate of fitness, driving in contravention of any rule made under section74 related to speed governors, driving a vehicle exceeding the permissiblelimit of weight, and using a vehicle in an unsafe condition (Waqar-ul-Haq,1998; p. 161)

The main features of the present ticket system (Section 116 MVO 1965)are:- Tickets of Rs. 10 (Scooter/Motor Cycle) and Rs. 20 (Car/Taxi)- The fine is to be deposited in a post office or a branch of the National

Bank of Pakistan within 7 days or by money order under intimation to thecourt of PS concerned

- Only policemen from the level of Assistant Sub-Inspector and above areauthorized to issue the ticket

Tickets may be given for 16 (minor) offences, driving without license, underage driving, and speeding are not included.

Compared to the traditional challan system, the ticket system in theory hasseveral advantages: - it is simple and speedy; - it saves court time; and


- it reduces corruption, since the fines are so low that bribery seems notworth the money.

However, as observed by the Committee on Traffic Management in thePunjab (1998), the ticketing system has not yet worked to full benefit.Causes for malfunctioning were: - no seizure of documents; - Public Service Vehicles not covered by the system; - the meagre amount of the fine limits the deterrent effect; - the procedure of depositing the fine needlessly cumbersome.

The following improvements to the ticketing system have beenrecommended by the Committee: the ticketing system should coverviolations of all road users; pedestrians and cyclists included; the ticketsshould be drawn up in quadruplicate in order to streamline (central)administration; the violator should pay the fine on the spot or, if not,challenge the fine and go to court or deposit the fine in a specified bank; thefines should be higher (Rs. 50 and Rs. 100 for two-wheelers and Rs. 100and Rs. 200 for four-wheel vehicles); the schedule of offences for whichtickets may be issued should be revised.

Legal law versus traditionUltimately, the process of traffic law enforcement should be rooted in legallaw. In Pakistan there is a centuries-old tradition of settling conflicts anddispute outside the sphere of legal law. In modern days this tradition is stillstrongly present in Pakistan, and also affects the operation of traffic lawenforcement. If an accident results in a fatality and is registered under theMVO 65, the case will come to court. However, the actual court decisiondoes not follow legal law; the court magistrates is satisfied if the partiesinvolved (offender and family of the deceased) come to a mutual under-standing. This so called 'compromising' is part and parcel of the legalculture in Pakistan. The case will be different if the accident is registeredunder penal law. In that case, the court will base it's verdict on standards ofthe law.

8.3. Main stakeholders in the field of road safety

Pakistan as a wholeThe road authorities in Pakistan are the National Highway Authority, theprovincial Communication and Works Departments, and the metropolitandevelopment authorities. Traditionally, all roads were administered by theprovincial works departments. This changed in 1987 when the NationalHighway Authority was established.

Based on the organization chart of the Punjab C&W Department, the C&WDepartment does not have a road safety unit in the organization.

The police forces are organized on a provincial basis. The Head is theInspector General Police who has several deputies working under him, oneof them Deputy IG Traffic. The province is divided into ranges and eachrange into districts.


Traffic control in the field is carried out by traffic police who are placed instrategic positions, like intersections. Their work is supervised by a mobilesergeant who works under the superintendent.

Traffic accidents are recorded by the police stations. All contacts, includingroad accidents reported to the police station, are entered into a log book.First Inspection Reports (FIR) are prepared for those accidents which aretaken to court. The police stations and the traffic police are separateorganizations.

Lahore road authoritiesTable 8.5 presents an overview of the main road authorities in the LahoreMetropolitan Area.

The Chief Minister of the Province of the Punjab

Lord Mayor Department of Transport Ministry of Communicationand Works

Metropolitan CorporationLahore

Lahore DevelopmentAuthority

Punjab Highway Authority

TEPA, WASA

Table 8.5. Overview Road Authorities Lahore Metropolitan Area.

GeneralThe most basic function of LDA is improvement of roads. The most basicfunction of TEPA is planning of roads. Often it is the case that roads are“taken over” by MCL after improvement has taken place. MCL is, then,responsible for maintenance of the roads. In practice, this maintenance canbe seriously flawed. One example is the maintenance of the varioussignalled intersections under supervision by MCL. In fact, many road workactivities by MCL are better described by the concepts of “construction”,“reconstruction” and “rehabilitation” than by the concept of “maintenance”.This leads to the conclusion that real maintenance work is not being donevery much. For one example, the numerous potholes on Jail Road, thatpresent a veritable danger at night for the stability of motorcycles, supportthis fact.

LDABoth Land Use Planning and Traffic Planning are under responsibility ofLDA. Sadly, an important opportunity for traffic management and trafficsafety is missed since there has been no coordination between those twoplanning units. The Town Planners of LDA supervise the division of landand the issuing of building controls in some areas of Lahore (not the wholeof Lahore)

TEPATEPA was in charge of the planning of the majority of roads in Lahore up tillthe eighties. However, the failure of an ambitious road project in Old Townled to a sharp cutback in the funding of TEPA. Since then NESPAK, a semi-


Government organization working on commercial basis, is responsible fordesigning major road projects in Lahore. One of these projects is the RingRoad project. Currently TEPA is facing problems of an unsteady cash flow.Funding from the Department of Transport has since some years now beencapricious.

On special request, TEPA will work together with Lahore traffic police ingiving advice on route planning for special events, e.g. the celebration ofIndependence Day when people from far around come into Lahore. In 1991,there was a special close working relationship between TEPA and LahoreTraffic Police, when they produced a traffic safety and traffic police trainingprogramme to the Government of the Punjab. The plan didn’t receiveformal government approval.

Some representatives of TEPA voicing their personal opinion rather thandepartment policy, deplore the bureaucratisation and politicizing of thedecision-making process about road design plans. Nowadays it is commonin Lahore, that decisions about road infrastructure follow a political agendarather than survey-based analysis of the problem. Thus, political decisionsmay sabotage decisions based on sound engineering design. This fact hasbeen confirmed by several sources at different meetings.

In 1990, Ross recommended that TEPA should establish a small full timeRoad Safety Unit (RSU) with a designated staff to be responsible for TEPAroad safety activities. The proposed RSU should have consisted of two roador traffic engineers and two or three technicians, and was also to function asthe secretariat to a Lahore Road Safety Committee to follow up, coordinate,and implement the decisions of the committee. However, thisrecommendation was not put into effect.

MCLThe Metropolitan Corporation Lahore (MCL) is mainly concerned with themaintenance and construction of major roads in the Lahore MetropolitanArea. If some activities are beyond the scope of MCL, a consulting firm likee.g. NESPAK can be hired to perform the task under supervision of MCL.To a large extent, MCL has a constant cash flow, generated in part bytaxes. In the case of large-scale maintenance and rehabilitation programs,the MCL works together with Traffic Police to ensure a smooth flow oftraffic.

In discussion with MCL, many improvements to the Lahore MetropolitanArea were mentioned as being “in the pipeline”. The major improvements tothe road system were:- Road improvement.- In the framework of the Grade Separation project, about 6 underpasses

and 6 flyovers for motorized traffic will be constructed. - Repair of traffic light installations under supervision of international

electronics firms Siemens and Philips.- Restricting access of certain areas to animal-drawn traffic.- Construction of extra flyovers for pedestrians, accompanied by police

guidance actions.


- Negotiations are in process about reinstallment of a public transportsystem that is comfortable, cheap, and safe.

Highway AuthorityThe Highway Authority is responsible for part of the Lahore road networkthat comprises the highways. The Highway Authority is part of the Ministryof Communication and Works. The “Communication” Departmentsupervises the construction and maintenance of the highway intercitynetwork in the Punjab. A separate “Works” Department is mainly focussedon restoration and maintenance of public buildings and architecture.Important large-scale projects of the Highway Authority have been theProvincial Highways project, for which the Finnish firm Finnroad has doneimportant consultancy work, and the Restricted Access Road project.

The Pakistan Motor Transport FederationThe Pakistan Motor Transport Federation represents the interests of theoperators of motorized transport. The Federation has representatives inevery district in Pakistan. Through the establishment of the West PakistanTransporter Mutual Assistance Co-operative Society, the federation hasarranged for some insurance to accident victims of transport vehicles. Forevery traffic fatalities caused by a transport vehicle, the Society pays 1 LakRs. 70.000 to the nearest family of the deceased.

The Pakistan Motor Transport Federation has clear policy preferences:- A driving school for professional drivers should be established in

collaboration between Government, traffic police, and private sector(transport business)

- Government should abstain from interference with the prices of fares. - Government should provide adequate facilities near central bus stands

in Lahore.- Route permits should not be given to individual bus operators, but only

to fleet owners ( a fleet being at least 20 vehicles)

Road Transport Workers Federation of PakistanThe counterpart of the Pakistan Motor Transport Federation is RoadTransport Workers Federation representing the interests of the roadtransport workers.

The Road Transport Workers Federation also has training for drivers highon its agenda. In the present system there is no formal education andpersons first become mechanics, then conductors, helper-drivers and thendrivers. The main learning process is seeing, imitating, and learning by trial-and-error. The professional drivers mostly buy their professional licensewithout testing (for Rs. 300 or 400).

Since the major part of the salary of the drivers has to come out ofcommission, they are forced to drive long hours and to pick up manypassengers. A professional driver who makes long days, can earn 6000 or7000 Rs a month, which makes it an attractive profession.


NGO ARUPThe Association of Road Users of Pakistan (ARUP) is a very recentlyestablished non-government self-funding road users’ organization inPakistan. Currently, this relatively new type of organization in Pakistan istrying to seek technical and financial support from private donors, and tofind mechanisms to ensure formal representation of ARUP in decision-making authorities and bodies, such as Planning and DevelopmentMinistries and Departments.

In their information leaflet, ARUP state the following objectives:- To create awareness amongst all stakeholders about their responsibility

towards road funding and their safety and culture of good citizenship.- To educate all stakeholders on proper usage of roads.- To ensure maintenance of roads, safety of road users, and health/clean

environment along the roads.- To ensure proper and quality construction of all types of roads.- To create an information network and databank of transport, road length,

condition and usage details of all vehicles, maps, environmentmonitoring for air, noise and waste.

- To create a workforce at gross root level to monitor compliance withparking, traffic, and loading rules.

- To create a dedicated work force for road side pollution (exhaust +noise)monitoring and greening of roads.

NGO HELPThe NGO HELP (“Helping Eradicate Leading Social Problems”) isregistered with the Social Welfare Department Punjab in 1994. The HELPorganization has been working since 1993 in various fields: health,education, women development, environment, youth development, NGOnetworking, and poverty alleviation. In the past, the HELP organization hasprovided school health services to mentally or physically retarded children,and has arranged vocational training courses for girls in collaboration withthe Government.

The activities which HELP has conducted were based on a multi-sectoral ormulti-organization basis, where involvement of other people andorganizations has been sought and encouraged.

In the field of traffic, HELP seeks to start an ambulance service in Lahoreand to provide medical testing for police officers.

Evaluation of organizational frameworkFrom an in-depth study in 1980 into the organizational framework for trafficand traffic safety, we quote the following conclusions that still seem validtoday:“There is no comprehensive traffic policy to steer the allocation of availablefinancial resources. There is no steady budget for the traffic sector, toindicate the resources for some years ahead, and to make meaningfulmedium term implementation planning possible. When large allocations aremade, they tend to be for specific schemes, rather than contributing to thekinds of institutional development necessary for a sustained improvementprogram. There is no authority responsible for the coordinated allocation of


money to the different parts of the traffic and transportation sector.” (VTS,1987b; p. 25)

“The responsibilities for planning, implementation and maintenance of theroad network is split between different authorities and agencies, whichmakes comprehensive and cost-effective planning very difficult. There is anobvious risk for overlapping, undercovering, and lacking coordination ofdifferent activities, which at the end has financial implications.” (VTS,1987b; p. 20).

“A large number of government agencies are involved in the administrationand control of traffic and transport in Lahore. Little overall coordination isevident between these bodies, and their respective responsibilities andfunctions are ill-defined.” (LDA/MPW, 1980; p. 65).

8.4. Organization and functioning of the Traffic Police

GeneralThe police forces are organized on the provincial basis. The Head is theInspector General Police who has several deputies working under him, oneof them Deputy IG Traffic. The province is divided into ranges and eachrange into districts.

Traffic control in the field is carried out by traffic police who are placed instrategic positions like intersections. Their work is supervised by a mobilesergeant who works under the superintendent.

Traffic accidents are recorded by the police stations. All contacts includingroad accidents reported to the police station are entered into a log bookwhile First Inspection Reports (FIR) are prepared for those accidents whichare taken to court. The police stations and the traffic police are separateorganizations.

Traffic Policing TasksThe Traffic Police Lahore have 6 main tasks:1. General Traffic Management2. Special V.V.I.P escort duty3. Enforcement of traffic rules4. Accident registration and analysis5. Driver testing and licensing6. Road safety education

Most of the time (over 80%) of the Traffic Police Lahore is spent on trafficmanagement and escort duty. In some periods, between 40 and 60% of thetotal time of the total work force is allocated to the special task of escortduty. Lahore, being the cultural centre of the province of the Punjab, has alot of high officials and dignitaries living in or visiting the city.

The traffic police are hierarchically organized according to the model of theBritish police. The 11 ranks from top to bottom are respectively: InspectorGeneral, Deputy Inspector General DIG; Senior Superintendent SSI; SeniorSuperintendent SSP; Superintendent; Deputy Superintendent Police DSP;


Inspector; Sub-inspector; Assistant Sub-inspector; Head Constable;Constable Enforcement activities:“On most days between 750-1000 challans are issued in Lahore requiringoffending motorist to appear in court and around 60-80 fixed penalty ticketsare issued for minor offences. In the case of fixed penalty tickets, the drivermust pay the appropriate fine to the Punjab Government at a Bank and takethe receipt to the local police station before he can reclaim his vehicle anddriver documents (confiscated at the time of the offence). In the case of achallan the driver is supposed to appear in court where a magistrate useshis discretion in imposing a fine within limits prescribed in Law. There is ahuge backlog of cases awaiting processing/completion by the Lahore courtsand drivers may continue to drive around for months before their case isfinally resolved/processed by the court.” (Ross, 1990; 28).

“Despite the court delays and problems, fines imposed on motorist for trafficoffences in Lahore amount to a total of around Rs. 0.5 - 0.7 millions per day(approx US $ 22,700-31,800/day). All of this money goes to the ProvincialGovernment and none of it is reallocated to improve the traffic enforcementfunction. There is precedence (from Karachi) for a portion of such finescollected from traffic police enforcement activities to be released back topolice to improve traffic police enforcement and road safety activities andthis may be something worth considering in Lahore.” (Ross, 1990; p. 28).

In a description of several stages of traffic policing, the first stage isdescribed as follows: “Traffic police staffing strength is often used tocompensate for lack of training, equipment, and mobility. Traffic control isall that is expected from the majority of traffic police and they are oftenstationed at traffic signals to provide backup support. Overwhelmed andunder-resourced, traffic police earn little respect from the public.” (AsianDevelopment Bank, 1998; p. 4.11-8).

Problems with police enforcementSwati (1980) mentions some particular organizational and operationalproblems that may hinder effective police enforcement. On theorganizational side there are several factors that may impede effectivenessof enforcement of traffic laws (Swati, 1980; p. 50):1. Traffic police is still part of general police where maintenance of law and

order and control of crime is considered far more important than roadsafety.

2. Local DIG's/SSP's do not consider traffic enforcement as a specializedjob requiring special training.

3. Traffic enforcement is not specifically targeted towards dangerousviolations. In urban areas the majority of traffic personnel is deployed attraffic control on intersections (signalled or not) rather than on trafficenforcement.

4. There is no systematic career planning arrangements for the trafficpolice.

5. The lower level traffic police (constable, head constable, sub-inspector,inspector) are hardly educated or trained.


6. Foot-constables and head constables lack means of transportation. Theauthority to issue challans or tickets has been withdrawn from constablesfor the purported reason that they were misusing their power.

This 20-year old assessment is still partly valid for present day situation. Asconcerns the Traffic Police in Lahore, we must make some qualifications tothis rather bleak picture:- About two third of the lower level traffic personnel have received some

basic training in the field of traffic rules and enforcement- The management of Lahore traffic police does consider traffic

enforcement as a specialized task.- Head constables do have the power to issue challans or tickets provided

they have received formal training.

Misuse of authorityIn an incisive analysis of misuse of authority in the traffic police, Swati(1980) sketches the main dilemma as follows:

Should we give traffic police the necessary authoritative powers to enforcethe rules for every offender, irrespective of class or status, accepting acertain degree of misuse of authority, or should we keep the traffic policepowerless in this regard and accept a situation where road users, andespecially high officials, have a ‘free for all’? (Swati, 1980; p. 63).

This analysis is still valid today and also for the Lahore traffic police. Fromseveral sources within and outside the traffic police it has been confirmedthat the traffic police are very reluctant to enforce traffic rules where theoffenders are well-known high-ranking officials in Lahore.

Barriers to professionalism“In the Police, the multiple organisation, and rapid changes of traffic officers(DIG and ADIG often serve only a few months, in maximum a couple ofyears) makes it difficult to train anybody in a sustainable way. A stablesituation with reasonable work periods (3-5 years) seems neither to bewanted by IGs nor politicians. This is one of the key reasons that the trafficpolice have continuously worsened during some last 20 years.” (Finnroad,1997b; p, 3/9).

“Also traffic enforcement which aims at limiting traffic violations iscompletely missing. Only documents are actively checked. Neither anyenforcement devices are in use. Accident information is not used inplanning of the activities.” (Finnroad, 1997n, p. 3/9).

A major impediment to the development of the professional competence isthe present system of tenure: “A further major impediment to the gradualdevelopment of a specialised, professional traffic police force is that thesenior officers in charge of Traffic have little or no control over who remainsin or transfers out from traffic. This is the responsibility of PoliceAdministration section and transfers in and out of Traffic are undertakenwithout reference to the senior traffic officers. Consequently, traffic divisiondoes not have the opportunity to gradually build up the pool of expertisenecessary to tackle the traffic problems facing Lahore.” (Ross, 1990; p. 32)


“... and the regular transfer of experienced personnel out of traffic destroysthe opportunity to create a pool of expertise. Just as personnel begin toknow and understand traffic regulations and gain expertise in traffic control,they are transferred out of traffic and replaced by someone who has noknowledge in this area. By the time the new man becomes competent anduseful, he is transferred out. This greatly inhibits the creation of aprofessional and competent traffic police force in Lahore.” (Ross, 1990; p.32)

Possible measures to increase police enforcement effectivenessRoss’s recommendations for improving the professional competence oftraffic police:- Establishment of an improved Traffic Training Institute (Upgrading of the

Traffic Training Institute)- Training of Traffic Police Instructors- Development of a new traffic police course and a number of short

specialist modules for special interest groups- Opportunities for advancement/promotion for those who choose to

specialise in traffic.

Shafique’s (1994) suggestions for improvement of the enforcement sectorare: - Training of traffic personnel in Traffic Rules.- Tenure and posting of traffic staff of at least five years with a minimum

experience of the staff posted in traffic of three years (as described inStanding Order No 8 of IGP Punjab)

- Additional vehicles (especially motorcycles)- Separate traffic police centre combining offices of upper staff, licensing

branch, computer section, training centre, traffic staff.- Higher punishment for traffic violations under Motor Vehicle

Ordinance/Motor Vehicle Rules legislation. The maximum fine of Rs100, established in 1965, has no deterrent effect anymore.

- Higher fines for violations under the ticket system. The current fines areRs. 10 for Motorcycles Motor Rickshaws and Rs. 20 for Motor Cars.

- Mandatory personal appearance of the driver in court.- Entry of convictions on the driving license.- Amendments in the Motor Vehicle Ordinance/Motor Vehicle Rule to

incorporate violations made by slow moving traffic (Tonga, Rehra,bicycle, hand-driven cart)

- Establishment of a special authoritative body (comprised of TrafficPolice, TEPA, Transport Department, District Administration and PrivateSector) that analyses the needs of transport, recommends an urbantransport policy (encouragement and provision of better transportfacilities, e.g. school bus system, enforcement of labour laws of PSVdrivers).

- Engineering measures focussed on smoother traffic regulation,especially by-passes, ring roads, flyovers, underpasses.

- Elimination of slow-moving traffic.


Considerations about reorganizationIn our discussions with main stakeholders in the field of traffic policing,there have been suggestions to alter the organizational and politicalstructure under which Lahore traffic police have to operate. For instance,instead of being part of general police it could be considered to make trafficpolice a total autonomous unit. Also, the idea has been offered to make thegeneral and traffic police answerable to a metropolitan government ratherthan a provincial government. However, these discussions tend to have anacademic character and are far removed from delivering real answers toreal problems. Whether traffic police is answerable to provincial ormetropolitan government is to a certain extent irrelevant for the problem athand. The simple fact is that traffic policing has been shown to be effectiveunder many different social and political forms of organization. Trafficpolicing in American cities where police is under metropolitan governmenthas achieved success, but so has traffic policing in major Asian cities wheretraffic police is under provincial government.

A specific proposal for reorganization has been to separate traffic policefrom general police and bring it under the authority of a separate ministerialDepartment, specifically the Department of Transport. One of thearguments given for the reorganization is that this would prevent thetransferral of personnel between general and traffic police and ensuregreater stability in the work force of traffic police. However, from severalpoints of view, it would seem unadvisable to separate traffic police fromgeneral police.

First of all, separation is not a good idea, since traffic police and generalpolice have to cooperate close together in a number of fields, e.g. trainingof police personnel, accident investigation and reporting, escort duty ofVVIPS, and encounters with criminals in traffic. Second, in principle there isnothing wrong with transferral of personnel between general and trafficpolice. This can have benefits for both general and traffic police, providedthere are clear limits to the scope of transferral. Third, traffic police itself isclearly reluctant to operate as a separate body under the command of theDepartment of Transport.

Still, the idea of separate enforcement agencies not directly answerable topolice, may be well worth considering in some areas of traffic. Separate andspecialized enforcement agencies dealing with e.g. violation of environ-mental laws, parking laws, or route regulation in Lahore could be envisaged.In several European cities, enforcement of parking laws is being done bytraffic wardens who are being paid by private firms. Of course, suchcommercial venues in the area of traffic laws is only possible when theenforcement pays itself back, when the violations are numerous and veryspecific, and there is a special legal provision that allows non-policepersons to engage in detection of violations. However, even if separateenforcement agencies are involved, there is often cooperation with thetraffic police.


8.5. Status of accident reporting

Pakistan:Traffic accidents are recorded by the police stations. All contacts includingroad accidents reported to the police station are entered into a log bookwhile First Inspection Reports (FIR) are prepared for those accidents whichare taken to court. The police stations and the traffic police are separateorganizations.

When a road accident occurs, a First Incident Report (FIR) is made upwhich gives basic information on the incident. This FIR form is a standardPolice report form used for all incidents reported to the police whether theyinvolve crime, accidents, or other incidents. It can be understood from thisthat the FIR form is quite general and does not contain the types of detailedinformation collected at accident sites in other countries.

To address these issues the MAAP (Microcomputer Accident AnalysisPackage) developed by TRL was introduced in Pakistan in the eighties andits use was attempted nationwide. However, the response from the police,despite training and advise, was limited and use of the programme fadedaway in a few years.

Lahore:Accident data collection, storage, and analysis in Lahore (as in the rest ofPakistan) are a police responsibility.

An interesting fact is that the responsibility for formal accident investigationlies not with the traffic police, but with the general police. This seems rootedin the tradition that only general police has investigative authority.

In practice, the procedure is as follows:- The accident is brought to the attention of the traffic police.- The traffic police arrive at the accident scene, make a preliminary

assessment of what has happened, and try to restore the flow function ofthe road as soon as possible.

- The general police is notified of the place of the accident and arrive laterto make up their final assessment as to which party bears the legalresponsibility for the accident.

In general, the scene of the accident is not secured for investigation sincethis would impede the flow of traffic on a road that is very likely alreadycongested. When the investigating officer arrives at the location of theaccident, often the flow of traffic has already been restored.

From a scientific point of view, the accident registration in Lahore - like inmany other Asian cities - has some severe shortcomings:- The exact location of accident is determined on the FIR, but not made

accessible.- Important accident information is not noted on the FIR, e.g. collision

type.- Only part of the accident information on the FIRs is available in

computerized form and can be used for purposes of analysis.


- Large under-registration of all non-fatal accidents.- One-sided, biased reporting of accidents in order to satisfy the needs of

the courts for a clear assignment of blame to one of the parties.

UnderreportingIn 1987 a comparison of hospital data with reported accidents in Lahoreshowed that the numbers of police reported fatalities were broadlyconsistent with hospital records of accident victims killed, but that thereported number of persons injured in traffic was only about 3% of thosetreated in hospital (VTS Transport Systems Corporation, 1987). Thestatistics for property damage only accidents are an even worseunderestimation.

Some experts even estimate the coverage of accidents as only 1 per centof the total number of accidents (VTS, 1987a; p. 1). "Assuming that inPakistan the true ratio of personal injury to property damage accidents iscommensurate with European experience, the Traffic Police statistics coveronly a fraction of one percent of the real number." (VTS, 1987a; . 1).

A recent estimate of underreporting of accidents was made by Granbergand Haddeland in their project “Road Safety Study of the Provincial High-ways Project”.

Type of accident Reported Real

Fatal 95% 2,5%

Serious injury 75% 4%

Minor injury 7,5% 20%

Damage only 2,5% 75%

Table 8.6. Reported and real distribution of accidents (Source: Finnroad andADCON Engineering, 1997).

For the reason that access of a traffic victim to a hospital requires policeapproval, fatal and serious injury accidents resulting in hospitalisation havebeen fairly well covered by FIRs.

The specific social-cultural dimension of underreporting has also beendescribed: “It is well known that in most accidents (especially those whichare less severe such as damage only or slight injury) drivers often agreeappropriate compensation between themselves and resolve the matterwithout reporting the accident or involving the police or the courts. Theauthor has even been informed by police officers that traffic policesometimes (unofficially) actively encourage such “out of court” settlements– even for more serious accidents, including fatal accidents so that accidentstatistics (which are based upon “reported” accidents) for their division arekept low (Ross, 1990; p. 3).

Even if the known deficiencies and underreporting in the data are ignored,the statistics still show Lahore to have fatality rates of around 7-10 times ashigh as major cities in industrialised countries.


Role of road authoritiesThe road authorities have definitely expressed a lack of concern for theroad safety statistics. The arguments given were that the statistics wereincomplete en did not allow exact location of accidents. Furthermore, roadauthorities seemed to imply that accident registration was the mainresponsibility of the police with no active role for the authorities themselves.

None of the road authorities (LDA/TEPA; MCL, Punjab Highway Authority)are presently monitoring the accidents on the roads which they haveplanned, designed, built, reconstructed, or rehabilitated.

An important point is that medical attention to the traffic victim is onlypermitted at the hospital when the investigating officer of the general policehas written up his FIR of the accident.

Accident location:Difficulties with establishing the exact location of the accident are nottypical for Lahore, but are general in Pakistan. In a pilot study of 537accidents in Pakistan “The most serious shortcoming in the road accidentdata collected by NTRC surveyors from FIRs concern the location of theaccident. Although the FIR defines (or is expected to define) the location as“distance from police station” the distance can either be anything fromcorrect or the location can be referred to as a name of a place which,according to the Pilot Study experience was often not identifiable, even bylocal residents or officials.” (Finnroad, 1998; p. 13).

8.6. Licensing

The regulations concerning licensing are the following. In order to startlearning, the candidate driver has to get a learner permit from a LicensingAuthority, which in Lahore is the Lahore Traffic Police. Six weeks afterhaving received the learner permit, the candidate driver is allowed toundergo a driving test.

The driving test by the Traffic Police Lahore consists of two parts:- A theoretical test: an oral examination about the meaning of different

traffic signs- An on-the-road test where the candidate has to drive for about 25 miles

in the city, under supervision of the examiner.

There is no formal teaching for buses or heavy vehicles. In practice, mostof the bus drivers are first working as ‘cleaners’, who are following thedriving of their ‘masters’ during three years, and start to drive themselves.Not surprisingly, given the high involvement of transport vehicles inaccidents in Lahore as well elsewhere in Pakistan, the recommendation hasbeen made to organize mandatory driver teaching for all bus drivers(Koivisto, 1997)

In Pakistan there are about 100 distinct districts with a more or lessseparate, autonomous Licensing Authority. In the Punjab, licenses can beapplied for in total 34 districts. Licensing authority in general resorts underthe DSP of general police at the District Headquarter. In Lahore district, the


licensing authority resorts with the SP Traffic posted at the DivisionHeadquarters.

Over the last few years, the Lahore district has experienced a decreasingnumber of applicants for driver licenses. There has been a decrease fromover 250 applicants per day in the eighties, to about 30 licenses a day in1999. The reason for this decrease seems to be that the Lahore district isexceptional in that it actually requires applicants to participate in the legallyrequired theoretical and practical test. The Lahore district is one of the (few)districts where applicants actually have to come to the office to pass thelegally required theoretical and practical test. The actual practice in manydistricts is that testing is not done, and that the license is simply “for sale”like a good in a shop. Many Lahori residents who may find taking the testdifficult or bothersome, take a trip to a neighbouring district to buy thelicense.

In order to improve the functioning of the licensing system, several stephave to be taken. A first step is to make a legal requirement that, withoutexception, candidate drivers may only apply for a license in the district theyhave lived in for the past 3 years. This would make it more difficult fordrivers to buy their license in a district which is lenient on driver testing. Asecond step would be to establish a central institute in the province ofPunjab that has the sole authority to issue licenses. The sub-offices in thedistricts would have to bring in the applications for the candidate drivers.The central institute could then check the application papers for correctnessand issue the license in accordance. Part of the application papers wouldhave to be a certificate of having passed the driving test. The centralinstitute should then hold computerized records of all new (and old) licenseholders.

A third step in the right direction would be to establish a separate agencythat is responsible for driver testing and the issuing of test pass certificates.Such an agency could very well be placed under the authority of theDepartment of Transport. This step would have several advantages. Theindependence and neutrality of the police in enforcing license possession isbetter guaranteed when the police is not involved in the issuing of licences.A further benefit would be that testing and issuing of official license paperswould be handled by different agencies which would make corruptionsomewhat more difficult. The logical fourth step would be to decrease theelement of personal discretion in the testing procedure itself. This could bedone by introducing a standardized (picture) test with a simple yes/noanswering format.

8.7. Provisional blueprint for an integrated system of licensing and driver training

In this section we present a proposal for an interlinked system of licensing,training, testing, and career advancement for professional drivers in whichthe central unit is made up by a newly to be established Traffic SafetyDriving School.

As we have mentioned in sections 5.4 and 5.8, the estimated costs of theconstruction of a training centre and training ground are about 5 million


US $. The costs for personnel should come from commercial exploitation ofthe centre.

The blueprint presented in the following pages is very ambitious and it isunlikely that all the stakeholders concerned are willing or are able to fulfillthe requirements in this plan. We presume it is very likely that some of thecontributions asked from the Department of Transport or the Pakistan RoadTransport Workers Federation are not feasible. Thus, the blueprint presentsan ideal-type vision that will have to be adjusted for practical purposes. Infact, the blueprint can only be made into an effective, workable plan whenparties can have further discussions on the issues involved. In our view, thenew steering committee for road safety should commit itself to stimulatethese discussions with the aim of achieving a workable plan. This blueprintcan help as a starting document that may not give all the realistic solutions,but that raises the important issues.

General systems requirements

The system of driver licensing and testing (for professional drivers) shouldbe:- fair - accessible to illiterate candidate drivers with potential good skill- economically viable- pre-select drivers with good potential for learning or to some extent

already well-skilled - able to train and test a considerable amount of drivers every year- able to monitor the safety record of these drivers after their training- able to take corrective measures in case of bad safety record- agreed upon by major stakeholders involved- graduated in 2-3 year periods for different licenses for different vehicle

types- able to guarantee a high likelihood of passing test and offering good

career incentives.

The Traffic Safety School

1. The name of the school will be the Police Traffic Safety and Drivingschool.

2. The school will be located in Lahore.

3. The school will have the following basic facilities:- Three to four work offices- Three to four classrooms- Two large rooms for keeping teaching materials- Toilets- A parking place for the school vehicles- A computer- A printer- A copier


4. The school will serve the following functions:- provide driving lessons for professional drivers- test and license drivers- create teaching materials to be used for own purposes and other

purposes- organize traffic safety seminar for different interest groups (policy

makers, traffic police, drivers)

5. The school will offer one total product consisting of the followingelements: driving lessons, driving test, provisional license, refreshertraining, special refresher training certificate, and final provisionallicense with special certificate.

6. The school will offer this product for different vehicle types: light van,wagon, bus.

7. The basic training course of the school (resulting with high degree ofcertainty in the license) will be maximal 10 to 15 days.

8. The refresher training course of the school will be maximal 5 days.

9. In the first years of its existence, the school will have a capacity ofprocessing 500 candidate drivers. If successful, this capacity will beextended in the third and fourth year.

10. The Traffic Safety School will guarantee a 90% likelihood thatcandidate drivers will pass the theoretical and practical test. In thisway most drivers can be sure that they will achieve the desired result.

11. In order to guarantee a high likelihood of passing the candidates withlow skills, bad medical condition or poor mentality will be screenedout.

12. In the case of failure to pass the test, the school will return 80% of the

candidates money if the candidate has followed the total programmeand has shown willingness and motivation to learn.

The programme

1. Courses will be given to maximum 10 candidates at a time perclassroom.

2. Courses will be accessible to both literate and illiterate candidatedrivers.

3. Courses will deal with the following subjects:- knowledge of key elements of the Pakistan Highway Code- knowledge of the braking distance of the vehicle - correct driving procedures for moving off, stopping, overtaking

and carrying out manoeuvres at junctions- moral importance of safe driving- night-time driving


- heat and driving- use of drugs and driving- importance of safe and economical (relaxed) driving- attitude towards customers

4. Practical driving lessons will be given to maximal 3 candidates at atime and one instructor. The instructor will model exemplarybehaviour.

The driving test

1. The driving test will have a theoretical, a psychological, and apractical part.

2. The theoretical test will be a picture test in order to allow botheducated and uneducated persons to get good test results.

3. The psychological test will be a short interview between candidatedriver and a trained psychologist. The test is intended to scrutinizethe moral attitude of the candidate driver towards road safety.

4. The candidate will be clearly informed in advance of the criteria onwhich his behaviour shall be judged and of the procedure of the test.

5. In order to prepare candidates for testing, they will receive one pilotpractical test and one pilot theory test in advance of the real test. Theresults of the pilot tests will be discussed with the candidates, and ananalysis will be made of the particular points which the candidate willhave to improve. This will ensure better performance at the final test,and will further contribute to the 90% pass rate.

6. The actual testing will be done by a separate examiner who has nothad contact with the candidate drivers before.

7. A special liaison officer from an NGO will supervise the testing inorder to guarantee fairness of the procedure.

8. If the candidate fails at either the practical or theoretical test, theschool will provide opportunities for free re-testing within two weekstime.

9. If the candidate fails for the second testing, he will have to pay anextra amount of money to engage in the third testing.

The licensing system

Candidate drivers1. The minimum age of candidate drivers will be 18 years.

2. A provisional license will be issued to candidate drivers who havepassed the test.


3. After having had one year of driving experience, the drivers arerequested to follow a 5-day refresher training at the Traffic SafetyDriving School.

4. After two years of driving experience the provisional license will beconverted into a definite license.

5. After having successfully followed the refresher training, drivers willreceive a special certificate stating this successful performance.

6. If the final driver license is received without a formal warning duringthe next two years, the driver will get a special Safety Certificate.

7. The driver may receive a formal warning from the School CommitteeBoard if he has been involved in:- two serious accidents in the first year of driving- has been ticketed by the police more than ten times

8. Receipt of the definite license may be postponed to a later date:- If the driver has not followed the refresher course without good

reason.- If the driver has been involved in more than ….. serious accidents

(resulting in death or serious injury) in the 2 year period.- If the driver has been involved in more than ….. material damage

only or slight injury accidents in a 2 year period.

9. Candidate drivers may only apply for a license for a bus or truck whenthey have had …. years experience on a wagon.

Refresher training of licensed drivers

10. All licensed drivers who are involved in a serious accident will berequested to undergo refresher training at the Traffic Safety TrainingSchool.

11. The licensed drivers who are requested to undergo refresher trainingwill have to register their current license at the Traffic Safety TrainingSchool.

The Traffic Police Lahore will:

1. Deliver 3 to 4 well-qualified training instructors to work 6 days a weekat the training school.

2. The training instructors will themselves receive 20 days training ayear in order to improve their educative skills.

3. Keep a computerized record of the license of every new beginningprofessional driver.

4. Do its best to ensure that the new license from the Police TrafficSafety School is not easily forged or copied.


5. Add points to the computerized record of a new driver for everyviolation he commits.

6. Add accident points to the computerized record of a new driver forevery accident he is involved in.

7. Inform the Traffic Safety School Board when the new driver hascollected more than 10 points in the first year.

The Traffic Safety School Board will:

1. Members of the following organizations will have a seat in the TrafficSafety School Board: Traffic Police, Pakistan Motor TransportFederation, NGO, The Road Transport Workers Federation.

2. The Traffic Safety School will fall under the authority of the TrafficPolice. Major decisions will be taken by the Traffic Safety SchoolBoard in which major stakeholders in the field of driver training arerepresented. The police will chair the board.

3. The new beginning driver will be invited to attend a meeting with theboard of the Traffic Safety School when he collects more than 10points in one year after receipt of his license, or is involved in morethan two serious accidents in his first year. During the meeting, aformal warning will be given to the driver and it will be stressed thathe will improve his driving behaviour.

The Road Transport Workers Federation will:

1. Strongly stimulate new beginning drivers to take lessons at the newdriving school.

2. Strongly stimulate the beginning drivers to undergo (the mandatory)refresher training after their first year of driving experience as aprofessional driver.

3. Will negotiate with Banks in order to achieve fair and favourablelending schemes for their drivers and will stimulate drivers to only dobusiness with the reliable and fair Banks.

4. Explain to the candidate drivers the special monetary and careervalue of the refresher certificate and the final driving certificate fromthe Traffic safety Driving school.

5. Participate in the ‘intake board committee’ which will review initialcapabilities and talents of candidate drivers in order to screen outcandidates with a low passing probability.

6. Provide specific facilities, materials, and assistance to the TrafficSafety School to be agreed upon later.


The Transport Department will:

1. Adopt a policy of preferential recruitment of new drivers who are inpossession of a license issued by the Traffic Safety School.

2. Adopt a policy of active and special career planning for drivers whoare in possession of a drivers certificate from the Traffic Safetydriving school or in possession of a refresher course certificate.

3. Regularly inform all drivers of this new policy.

The Pakistan Motor Transport Federation will:

1. Contribute in a significant way to the initial funding of the TrafficSafety Driving School.

2. Endorse as a formal policy to only rent cars to new drivers who havetheir training and license from the new school

3. Verify annually - as part of the new policy - that the licenses of thenew drivers are from the Police Traffic Safety School, and have notbeen changed.

4. Give monetary opportunity and actively stimulate the new drivers tofollow the mandatory refresher training.

5. Give special financial bonuses for new drivers who have receivedtheir refresher certificate or have received their final certificate.

6. Give advance career opportunities - again as part of the new policy -to those drivers who can show the special Safety Certificate.

7. Keep records of the new drivers who have received temporarylicense and inform them when they are due for refresher training ordue to visit the Traffic Safety school for receipt of the definite licenseand the certificate.

8. Support the teachings of the Driving School about a moreeconomical, relaxed driving style by offering drivers monetaryincentives when their wagons or vans are low on maintenance,damage, wear-and-tear or fuel consumption.

The NGO will:

1. Ensure reliable medical testing of candidate drivers for minimalcosts.

2. Provide assistance in creating teaching and testing materials for theschool.

3. Supervise the financial administration of the Driving School.

4. Register complaints about the Traffic Safety School.


8.8. Report of the 17th April 1999 workshop

Organization of the workshopOn 17th April 1999, a special workshop was organized to generate newideas for the road safety plan.

The following persons were invited to attend the workshop:

Police (12 persons):Mr. Khawaja Khalid Farooq (Deputy Inspector General of Police), Mr. AsifNawaz (Deputy Inspector General), Mr. Shahid Iqbal (SeniorSuperintendent), Mr. Ghalib A. Bandesha (Senior Superintendent, HeadQuarters Traffic, Punjab), Mr. Sardar Saeed Gul (Senior SuperintendentT.T.I. Chung Lahore), Dr. Muhammad Shafique (Superintendent Police),Mr. Malik Abdul Aziz (Superintendent Traffic Police Lahore), Dr. S.M.Shafique (Director R&R, Special Branch, Lahore), Mr. Syed PervaizKandhari (Deputy Superintendent, Police Traffic Headquarters, Punjab,Lahore), Mr. Zulfiqar Ahmed (Deputy Superintendent, Traffic Lahore), Mr.Mehmood-ul-Hassan Gilani (Inspector Traffic Headquarters Punjab Lahore),Mr. Tariq Azeem Khan (PSO to Chairman Traffic Task Force Punjab LHR).

Road Authorities (7 persons):Mr. Masood Quazi (Director Planning Studies TEPA), Mr. Khalid Alvi(Deputy Director Traffic Engineering TEPA), Mr. Abdul Satar (ChiefEngineer (LDA), Mr. Khawaja Khalid Latif (Chief Engineer of the Ministry ofCommunication & Works), Mr. Masood Ali Khan (Director Planning andEngineering of Ministry of Communication & Works), Col. (Rtd.)Muhammad Zafar (Chief Engineer Metropolitan Corporation Lahore), Mr.Qazi Riaz (Chief Engineer NESPAK consultancy).

Media (4 persons):Mr. Dr. Waqar Ch: (A.P.P. Lahore), Mr. Hameed Laiq (The News), Mr.Rana Javed Ahmed (The Nation), Mr. Irfan Nazir (Transport Section, TheJang)

Transport Federation (3 persons):Ch.. Haji Muhammad Hayat (General Secretary Pakistan Motor TransportFederation), Ch. Muhammad Anwar Zahoor (M.D. Lahore Travel Service),and a representative of the Rickshaw Union.

Court Transport and Education functionaries (4 persons):Mr. Dr. Abdul Rahim Khan (U.E.T. Lahore), Mr. Nadir Aqeel Ansari (DeputySecretary Education Punjab Lahore), Mr. Ch. Kabir Ahmed (SecretaryRegional Transport Authority Lahore), Mr. Saeed Akhtar Ansari (AssistantCommisioner Traffic Lahore).

National Transport Research Centre: Mr. M.S. Qureshi (N.T.R.C.)NGO’s: Mr. Dr. Fuad Hameed Rai (Training Manager Public HealthConsultant Shalimar Hospital Lahore), Dr. Muzaffar Malik (Chief ExectivePersian Oriental Rugs; Representative of Shopkeepers), Commander (R)


Asif J. Khawaja (ARUP Unit 9), Mr. Tariq Hameed (Packages Ltd.), Mr.Khawar Farid (SheherSaaz).

Schools: Principal Divisional Public School Headmaster Pilot High SchoolWahdat Road Lahore.

Present were:Police: Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja, DIG; M. Ghalib A. Bandesha, SSP, HQTraffic, Punjab, Lahore; Dr. S.M. Shafique, Director R&R, Special Branch,Lahore; Mr. Malik Abdul Aziz, SP Traffic, Lahore; Mr. Mehmood HussainGilani Inspector Traffic HQ, Punjab, Lahore; Mr. Tariq Azeem Khan PSO toChairman Traffic Task Force, Punjab LHR.

ARUP: Mr. Sardar M. Humayun Khan, Pegasus International; Mr. Asif J.Khawaja,Transportation Sector: Mr. Haji Muhammad Hayyat, General SecretaryPakistan Motor Transport Federation.Mr. Ch. Anwar Zahoor M.D. Lahore Travel ServiceHealth Sector: Mr. dr. Fuad Hameed Rai, Training Manager & Public HealthConsultant. NESPAK: Mr. Riaz Ahmad QuaziMedia: Mr. Hameed Laiq, The NewsWorld Bank: Mr. Navaid A. Qureshi, Senior Urban & Transport Specialist.Mr. Khurram Farid, Executive Director SheherSaaz Research andDevelopment in Human Settlements.SWOV Dutch Institute for Road Safety Research: Mr. Ch. Goldenbeld

To the deep regret of all participants, representatives from LDA/TEPA andMCL were not present. The meeting was videotaped.

Report of the Workshop on the Road safety Component of the LUTP, 17April 1999.

Mr. Ghalib Bandesha opened the meeting at 10:00 hrs. He explained shortlythe starting history of the Lahore Urban Transport Project. Starting out as aproject for the enhancement of the road capacity and road signals inLahore, it was expanded to the subject of road safety by the special effortsof Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja, the then active DIG of Traffic Police. Theroad safety component would especially cater for the needs of thevulnerable road users being the pedestrians, drivers of non-motorizedvehicles and drivers of motorized two-wheelers. The road safety issues canbe categorized under the three E's: Engineering, Enforcement andEducation. He explained further that the present workshop is part of thefinal study that will cater for the safety of the road users. After this briefintroduction, Mr. Ghalib Bandesha introduced Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawajaas the chairman of the meeting who would lead the discussion in the rightdirection.

Mr. Farooq Khawaja thanked Mr. Ghalib Bandesha for the honour of beingasked to act as the Chairman of the Meeting. In his opening address, Mr.Farooq Khawaja recollected briefly the history of the LUTP. Originally theproject was solely concerned with improving road facilities and road


transport in Lahore. World Bank was prepared to fund the LUTP project ona loan basis for a total amount between US $ 150-200 million over a periodof 5-7 years. In conversations with the Chief Minister of the Punjab,arguments were given for inclusion of a road safety component in theproject. The Government of the Punjab agreed with this.

Mr. Farooq Khawaja stressed that various sectors are involved in roadsafety. All aspects should be researched and taken into account in order tocome up with a set of remedial measures. In principle the Chief Minister ofthe Punjab will approve of recommendations that will reduce accidents,improve traffic flow and modernise Lahore traffic (police).

The importance of road safety can be measured from the fact that everyyear Pakistan loses about 1 Billion $ US because road unsafety. This doesnot take into account the loss in human terms. The fact that half of thoseinvited did not come says something about the importance attached to roadsafety.

In the Terms of Reference for the project which were worked out in goodcooperation with Mr. Qureshi and Mr. Durrani (Mr. Farooq extends histhanks to both gentlemen from the World Bank) a programme was foreseenfor a period of 5-7 years, suggesting improvements for traffic managementin various Departments (Engineering, Enforcement, Education, Economics).In principle, the traffic laws are good enough to create a deterrent effect,but no one department can deliver the goods working in isolation. There hasto be a coordinated strategy. The Police Department carries a lot of theburden of traffic management, while other Departments, and certainly thepublic itself, are also involved in these matters. What is needed are bothproposals for the long-term and short-term. By and large we are going to tellMr. Goldenbeld what the problems are and what the solutions are. What isexpected from Mr. Goldenbeld is a priority list of the solutions. However,unless some results are achieved in the short term, Government will lose itsinterest in the total project. Despite scarcity of resources, some successshould be booked very early in the project.

Also, the functioning of the police needs to be improved. The present daystrength of 4500 traffic police for the whole of the Punjab is not much. Yet,clearly, a better performance is needed. The experience from the MotorwayPolice teaches us that traffic police can function better when working hoursare limited, services are better, and better training is provided.

It should be possible to have better trained traffic police within the period ofone year. If law enforcers are better trained, undoubtedly the public willbehave better.

Of course, the work of traffic policing cannot be seen in isolation from theengineering aspects. Road engineering is very important in achieving abetter flow of traffic. At present, there are many design shortcomings in theroads in Lahore. Even on beautiful, recently re-built roads, there are alreadynew emerging problems of traffic flow. For example, traffic police hasalready experienced many traffic problems with the recently finished MainBoulevard Gulberg.


Three more roads have recently expanded: J-Road to the Airport, FerozpurRoad, and GT-Road. These roads require immediate attention. The MallRoad requires immediate improvement. At this point in his address, Mr.Farooq Khawaja expresses his regret that the representatives from TEPAare not present. He would sincerely like to know the plans of TEPA in thisregard.

Continuing with the topic of Engineering, Mr Farooq Khawaja states that toolittle attention has been paid to the issues of segregating slow and fastmoving traffic, and of providing special facilities for pedestrians.

He also mentions the poor condition in which the Public Service Transportsystem is at the present time. The paradox is that well-educated Pakistaniswho have travelled worldwide expect the same facilities in Lahore andelsewhere in Pakistan without wanting to pay for these facilities in the formof taxes. Mr. Farooq Khawaja is very interested to hear the views fromNESPAK about the progress they are making in improving the transport sy-stem.

After the opening address of the Chairman, Mr. Ch. Goldenbeld isintroduced as the next speaker. In his presentation about the challenge ofroad safety, Mr. Goldenbeld first draws attention to the road safety situationin his own country, The Netherlands. According to Mr. Goldenbeld, thenumber of fatalities in the Netherlands has declined from over 3000 in 1971to less than 1300 in the early nineties, while in the same period, trafficvolume increased over five times. In terms of the fatality rate (expressed asnumber of fatalities per 100.000 kilometres travelled) the Netherlands isamong the top 5 of Europe's safest countries. According to Mr. Goldenbeld,this impressive road safety record is due to Government takingresponsibility for road safety, to problem diagnosis, design of measures,and preparation of implementation and evaluation of measures. Thisprocess of problem diagnosis, measures, implementation, and evaluation isactually repeated every year in the Netherlands. Mr. Goldenbeld refers toroad safety work as a ‘continuous struggle’.

Pakistan, on the other hand, has rather a bad safety record. In terms ofnumber of fatalities per 10.000 motor vehicles, Pakistan has a bad record.

From a colleague Road Safety specialist, Tom Granberg, who worked forover 2 years in Pakistan, Mr. Goldenbeld has gathered the followinginformation: In 1998 there were 7000 traffic fatalities in Pakistan, in otherwords: 20 fatalities per day. If no further action is taken, it is estimated thatthis number of fatalities will be doubled in 2010. The total annual number ofaccidents in Pakistan is estimated to be 300.000. Again, if no further actionis taken, in 2010 this number of accidents will very likely rise to 700,000.Nowadays, the economic costs associated with road safety are estimated tobe US $ 1 billion. In 2010 these costs will very likely be in the order of 2,5billion US $. Concerning Lahore, there is also a clear rise in traffic fatalitiesover the past ten years. In the period 89-93, 866 road users died in Lahoretraffic; in the subsequent period 94-98, this number has risen to 1349, anincrease of over 50%. For the next five year period, 99-03 traffic fatalitiesmay rise to over 2000.


Essentially what we can learn from these figures is that we are only seeingthe start of problems in Lahore and Pakistan. Therefore, the necessity oftaking preventative action is absolute.

After this outline of the problems, Mr. Goldenbeld asks the audience to thinkabout the following problem. If a plane with 260 Lahori crashed, thepsychological reaction to such an event would be very strong. Inpsychological terms, the event would be considered a disaster. Both thepublic and the politicians would cry out for strong countermeasures. Therewould be a unified strong call for a) intensive investigation of the causes ofthe accident, b) for guarantees the accident would never happen again, andc) for better safety and quality control procedures etc. Contrast this with thereaction towards the event that 260 Lahori die in traffic in one year. Thereaction towards this latter event is much less strong, much more relaxed:‘So what, accidents can happen’. Traffic accidents are not considered to bea disaster.

In the example of the plane crash, there is a strong feeling that measurescan be taken to prevent further accidents. However, in terms of thepotential to prevent the difference between a plane crash and trafficaccidents is not that large. An aeroplane is made by human design, and sois the traffic system. The same steps are to be taken to secure the safety ofthe aeroplane - accident investigation, improved safety, and quality control -can also be taken to prevent road traffic accidents. In the words, of Mr.Goldenbeld, “Traffic accidents can happen because we let them happen”.

In conclusion, Mr. Goldenbeld stresses the need to plant the seeds forpositive preventative action in the field of road safety now. And like thegrowing of a tree or of a child, some things cannot be hurried. Moreimportant than any temporary success is the continuous, sustained efforttowards better road safety. After this talk, the floor is given to Mr. Dr. S.M. Shafique, Director, R&RSpecial Branch, Lahore. Mr. Shafique presents a paper especiallyresearched and prepared for the meeting. A summary of the main points inthis paper is given below.

With a population of about 7 million, and a high rate of migration due tobetter health, education, and job facilities, the Lahore traffic has to copewith increasing travel demands and increasing pressure. According torecent estimates, there are about 15.000 buses/wagons/air conditionedcoaches daily entering Lahore from cities like Rawalpindi, Multan,Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Kasur, Sargodha, Mianwali, and many other smalltowns in the close proximity of Lahore city. About 3500 trucks daily enterLahore to unload the goods, and the same number leaves Lahore afterloading goods for different destinations. The total number of motor vehicleson the Lahore roads is about half a million. This number varies over theweek; especially on Monday and Saturday the traffic load is greater by atleast 10 to 15 per cent.


The traffic problems are mainly in six categories:1. Bad timing of traffic signals (e.g. Zahoor Elahi Road and Main Boulevard

Gulberg crossing), causing unnecessary traffic muddling.2. Most of the traffic signals are not in working order. 3. Broken roads make the traffic go slow.4. Especially in North and North West Lahore slow moving traffic of animal

driven vehicles and dilapidated buses/wagons are causing problems.5. There are about 52 main level crossings in Lahore creating traffic

muddling. 6. Most of the roads of Lahore have been encroached, and their right of

way has been reduced by almost half.

After this taking stock of problems, Dr. Shafique makes specific recom-mendations for engineering and education. His 9-point Engineeringproposals are:1. Construct subway connecting South Eastern Lahore with Gulberg.2. Eliminate vehicles with silencers emitting thick smoke and thereby

inviting dangerous overtaking.3. A suitable place close to Saggian bridge should be selected for shifting

stands of airconditioned coaches.4. An overhead bridge for road traffic is needed at the crossing near

Shahdara, Gujranwala-Rawalpindi road, due to the long closing time ofthe level crossing.

5. From the point of Jinnah Hospital there must be a link road connectingWahdat Road with the road along the Canal.

6. A bridge for pedestrians should be constructed for reaching the shrine ofData Sahib in order to accommodate the heavy rush of devotees.

7. A long term plan should formulated for the shifting or making new whole-sale markets away from the Central Business District.

8. A parallel bridge should be constructed along Shair Pao Bridge in orderto alleviate the problems caused by breakdown of vehicles on the narrowShair Pao overhead bridge.

9. Beggars should be removed from important road crossings, so that theydo not cause drivers to seek for money when the light has already turnedgreen.

Besides these points dealing mainly with engineering, Mr. Shafique offersanother set of specific recommendations in the field of public education andawareness:1. In view of the low level of driver education in Lahore, and the low

number of certified driving schools, more quality driving schools withwell trained instructors should be established.

2. At present, no education is legally required to obtain a driving license.There must be a legal condition of minimum education to get a drivinglicense.

3. Driver education should encourage faulty driving behaviour like: correctuse of indicators, correct use of light when driving in the dark, respect forthe law and observance of traffic signals, parking rules, stopping in linefor traffic signals, horn honking, changing lanes, meaning of red andamber light, right procedure of overtaking.

4. Pedestrians should be made aware as to: use of footpaths, use of rightside of the road, use of zebra's.


5. Special attention should be given by parents to guiding their children.6. Road safety seminars should be held with participation by NGO's. 7. The construction of speed breakers in front of many houses on private

initiative is a danger on the road.

After this inspiring presentation, ARUP representative Mr. Asif J. Khawajabriefly introduces the setup organization of ARUP which is in the process ofbecoming a major NGO organization in Pakistan. Mr. Khawaja opens thediscussion with a question about the exact limit of the CBD. Mr. Shafiqueexplains that the limits cannot be exactly given. Mr. Khushal Khan furtherexplains that this is due to the historical character of Lahore. There is noclear demarcation of the CBD, but certain characteristics of the CDB areacan be given.

Mr. Khawaja mentions the necessity of introducing a no-parking zone inCDB. Mr. Shafique mentions that there is awareness in Lahore of theparking problem. Mr. Farooq joins in the discussion and states that thereactually is no (general) law which prohibits parking alongside the road.Parking laws would have to be locally implemented and enforced.Preconditions are that the public has to be informed, that the laws have tobe formulated, and that the fines for faulty parking have to increased.

Mr. Khawaja stresses the need for proper public transport arrangements ifno parking areas are to be introduced in Lahore. Then he mentionsexamples of parking policy and enforcement in Australia and Karachi. InKarachi, roads with forbidden parking are clearly defined; parked cars arefork lifted. In total, ten fork lifts are operational in Karachi. Why not do thesame thing in Lahore? Mr. Shafique remarks that clearly there is also inKarachi violation of parking rules as in Lahore.

At this moment, the representative from NESPAK, Mr. Riaz Ahmad Quazi,joins the discussion. He assures the participants that government is alreadyaware of many of the traffic problems in Lahore. NESPAK started work on560 roads in October 1997 (Rs. 800 million). It will do work on about 1200roads, and in a period of 20 months, one road per day was completed.

Mr. Riaz Ahmad Qazi concurs with the statement of Dr. Goldenbeld thatproblem diagnosis is essential for taking remedial measures. One of theproblems facing NESPAK is that people use new roads to wash theirclothes on, and the detergents get into the road surface. A surveillanceteam should visit the road on the spot and educate the public about thesematters. For traffic problems in Lahore, flyovers and bus system are verymuch in need to combat the problems.

Mr. Shafique asks Mr. Goldenbeld a question about the handling of parkingproblems in Amsterdam. Mr. Goldenbeld answers that parking space israther scarce in Amsterdam and that enforcement of parking violations inAmsterdam is generating a lot of revenue for the city. More in general, Mr.Goldenbeld explains that enforcement of traffic violations is a source ofrevenue generation for the Dutch government.


Mr. Shafique stresses that enforcement as revenue source would not workso easily in Pakistan, because of the particular cultural dimension. InPakistan it may be easy to catch a thief, but not so easy to punish him.

Mr Shafique notes that drivers and conductors lack education. The privatedriving schools operating in the Punjab are just in it for the money and donot promote safe driving. There should be many reasonable standardschools for professional drivers.

Mr. Anwar Zahoor begs to differ from Mr. Shafique, and points out theeconomical dimension of the problem. If licenses of professional drivers areto be limited to the educated, this will have grave consequences for theemployment of the professional drivers. Less than 5% of the professionaldrivers have received formal education.

Mr. Shafique answers that, with the passage of time, the literacy rates willimprove.

Mr. Anwar Zahoor identifies the problem of driver training as one ofimplementation. There is a lack of responsibility on the side of goodcitizens. There is not any finance for this problem.

Mr.Riaz Riaz Ahmad Qazi also notes that many of the professional driverscannot read what is written. How can we educate an illiterate man?

Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja agrees that a majority of the commercial driversare illiterate. Yet somehow a minimum standard of education should be laiddown. It is clear that the licensing system is not up to the mark. Drivers arenot properly tested, and part of the blame lies with the Police Departmentas well. However, if a minimum level of education is to be introduced, weshould be cautious in rendering drivers jobless. We could be turning joblessdrivers into dacoits! We cannot withdraw licenses from the commercialdrivers now.

According to Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja, the factors making the commer-cial drivers into dangerous drivers are well-known:- long working hours- no proper salary - driving on commission basis (commission based on the number of

passengers, which in turn is based on the number of routes completedper day completed).

It is no wonder that these commercial drivers tend towards overloading andoverspeeding.

With regard to the licensing system, Mr. Shafique mentions that the lawshould set an upper range limit for the license, so that elderly drivers withmedical problems should be tested for renewal of license.

Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja answers to this by saying that in regard to manyaffairs, the legal framework is already there. For instance, commercialdrivers are required to give a medical certificate of fitness once they have


reached the age of 50. However, the majority of doctors do not lookseriously into the medical state of the driver in issuing their certificate.

With regard to licensing, Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja proposes to do awaywith discretion (subjective decision making). The personal decision of thedistrict officer in the testing and licensing procedure should be minimized. Atest could be devised which excludes personal discretion.

Mention is made of the lack of enforcement. Mr Khalid Farooq Khawajaagrees with the statement of lack of proper enforcement, but he asks theaudience the question: Why? All problems are interlinked. We should notrecommend measures in “thin air”. He explains the situation where efficientresponsible officer have to withstand receiving complaints from high-levelofficials. The way the officer on the ground is being treated by high-levelofficials sends a message to other policemen, resulting in a general evasiveattitude as far as some traffic violations are concerned. Most drivers, whenstopped by a traffic police officer for a violation, first do not agree with theviolation, second will request a pardon, and third will accuse the policeofficer. Even physical assault on traffic officers while carrying out theirduties has been experienced. This is not to deny that traffic police officersmay engage in corrupt behaviour, but it shows the other side of the coin andthe mentality of drivers which they have to cope with.

Dr. Fuad Hameed Rai (Public Health Consultant) draws attention to thehealth dimension of the traffic in Lahore. He gives a number of statistics:- The population growth rate in a big city like Lahore is approximately 9%

a year. In 8 to 10 years the population will be doubled. - The total number of motor vehicles In Lahore was 1.48 million in 1995.- Traffic accidents are the third cause of death in Lahore.

Dr. Fuad Hameed Rai then goes on to name a long list of complaints anddiseases that are caused in a major way by the present level of air pollutionin Lahore, produced by the exhaust emissions of the motorized traffic.

With regard to the problem of air pollution, the attention of the audienceturns towards the functioning of RTA (Regional Transport Authority) andMVE (Motor Vehicle Examiner). In general only 10 to 15 vehicles out ofevery 100 vehicles to be checked by the MVH are checked in some ways,and not in the ways prescribed by law because of the lack of measuringequipment.

Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja suggests the idea that a three member boardconsisting of MVE, Police Officer, and Magistrate issues a certificate offitness for a vehicle. The actual testing of vehicles could be done by bigfirms like Honda.

With regard to the health dimension of traffic, Mr. Hameed Rai proposesthe introduction of Accident Emergency Mobile Unit.

The subjects of checking the use of drugs among commercial driverscomes up. Mr. Shafique asks whether there are examples of drug testing inother countries.


Mr. Khalid Farooq asks for the view of the Transporter's Federation. Mr.Hayat answers that ultimately the government is responsible for providing agood road system, good queue facilities etc.

Under guidance of Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja, the discussion returns to thesubject of traffic law enforcement. In two months time about 20.000 to25.000 challans can be issued in Lahore. But what is the fate of thosechallans? They are pending in court, get lost, or only a nominal fine isimposed.

Mr. Haji Muhammad Hayat remarks that commercial drivers always havetheir fitness certificates and their route permits with them, and that thecommercial drivers cannot understand the meaning of certain challans. Forexample they get challaned for wrong parking while there are no signsindicating no parking areas.

Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja stresses that even though corruption amongtraffic police cannot be denied, very likely 70 to 80% of the challans arecorrect, but what happens to these challans in court? In many casespayment of 100 rupees to the checking officer is enough to get the licenseback.

Again, Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja repeats the question: what happens tothe thousands of challans issued to commercial drives in court? In reactionto this, Mr. Qazi Riaz observes that the challan system should be eliminatedand replaced by a ticketing system. Mr. Farooq Khawaja tells about thepositive experiences with the recently re-introduced ticket system. In about2 months time 55,000 tickets were issued and nearly 100% of the ticketswere correctly paid.

Again guiding the discussion towards enforcement issues, Mr. KhalidFarooq Khawaja explains that as yet, no effective deterrent action towardscommercial drivers can be undertaken. With underhand payment of aboutRs. 50-100, most of these drivers go of ‘scot-free’. Of course, a large part ofthe problem is economic. Commercial drivers commit violations out ofeconomic motives, i.e. their own business interests. The economic aspectalso plays a role in the way police officers handle traffic violations. In theirheart, most of the traffic police officers want to be honest in dealing withtraffic violations. However economic circumstances force people to becorrupt. We should look for ways of combining enforcement with financialincentive. For instance, police officers could be given part of the totalamount of fines they issue. That would decrease corruption and increasegood enforcement of traffic laws.

Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja has now touched upon the subject of revenuegeneration for road safety activities. Upon this the discussion veers backfast to the parking issues. Mr. Qazi Riaz remarks that the construction ofparking plaza's is not always economically viable. It takes too long beforethe return on investment in the plaza. The solution seems to be that policeand magistrate decide jointly upon which areas are to be (paid) parkingareas and which non-parking areas and from Day 1 you will have revenuegeneration by paid parking.


In the area of parking, success has been achieved with regard to parkingalongside Main Boulevard Gulberg. A combination of publicity andenforcement ensured that parking alongside Main Boulevard was restricted.Mr. Farooq Khawaja also recalls some moderate success in the parkingarea as a result of dialogue between Traffic Police and Trader'sAssociation, resulting in less double and triple lane parking.

It is important that the traders and shopkeepers realize themselves thatmaximum one half-hour parking near their shop in effect maximizes theaccess of many clients to their shop.

Staying with the topic of revenue generation, Mr. Anwar Zahoor makes astrong argument for re-allocation of the money earned by the ticketingsystem to both traffic police (less corruption) and to transport education andtraining school facilities. Re-allocation should be decided by high-levelofficials.

The next general topic in the discussion is coordination. The openingremark is that new-built roads soon are being dug open again for purposesof water, or gas pipes, or electricity cable repairs.

Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja observes that a positive development towardsbetter coordination has already occurred. A special coordination body hasbeen set up to coordinate the activities of the different provincialdepartments involved in the physical infrastructure of the Metropolitan Area(MCL, WASA, WAPDA etc.). Every Monday, the Mayor of Lahore chairs aspecial meeting in which the main stakeholders discuss the potential workfor the coordination of their respective activities.

Traffic management is also to a large extent a matter of coordination. Someof the shortcomings of Lahore traffic management are again briefly notedby members of the audience. First, traffic lights are not working. Second,traffic jams repeatedly occur on links between main roads. Traffic jams alsoregularly occur at fixed times near schools and mosques, especially duringFriday prayers. In regulating traffic at intersections, it happens thatconstables give far too much time to one particular direction of flow. Thisshould be addressed in the training they receive.

Mr. Qazi Riaz observes that the NHA authority is already working onstandards for rural roads. He strongly supports the argument that the causeof accidents is to be sought in the use of the roads rather than in the designof the roads.

Mr. Khushal Khan begs to disagree with this last observation. In his view tobe illuminated in his presentation, the use of the road, the driver behaviour,is linked up closely to the design of the road. Mr. Khushal Khan gives apresentation on network safety issues, illuminating the engineering aspectsof the road safety in Lahore. He dissects the total process of road mana-gement in five stages or activities: planning, design, construction, operationand maintenance, and evaluation and follow-up. After this he pays attentionto the areas of neglect or oversight in each of these stages.


Planning: From a road safety point of view, planning of road network in theLahore Metropolitan Area has made some serious errors resulting inincreased traffic risk for road users. In some places, the road geometry isbad. The planning is sometimes downright irrational, not taking into accountthe road type required for the area. An example is Main Boulevard Gulbergwhich is a limited access motorway running through a commercial area. Afurther example of bad planning (or design) are the service roads leadingstraight to the new crossings. Furthermore, the special requirements ofvulnerable road users, who make up three quarters of the traffic in Lahore,are ignored. Seven to eight main roads handle most of the traffic in Lahore,but the links between these roads are deficient in handling the requiredcapacity.

Design: The major problem with design of roads in Lahore MetropolitanArea is the absence of local design standards. For example NESPAK willuse American standards, Mott Mc Donald will use British standards, othersmay use Australian standards or no standards at all. Inconsistency ofstandards and inappropriate standards lead to confusion among road users.

Construction: Construction sites in Lahore are especially hazardous. Con-struction work is not signalled far in advance. In this respect the contractsare deficient. In the contracts there is only a sentence stating that thecontractor should make sure to take diversion measures. The contractshould be more clear about the exact procedure of diversion.

Operation and maintenance: The awareness of operation and maintenanceof roads among the various responsible government institutions (MCL/LD-A/TEPA) is not very high. The main focus of these institutions is on new, bigprojects rather than on - what is in their view - ‘finished’ projects. Forexample, in the recently constructed Jail-road, various potholes - hazardousto night-time driving rickshaws and motorcycles - can be observed.However, no action is taken to eliminate these potholes, despite knowledgeof their presence.

Evaluation and follow-up: After a road project is finished, no evaluation isbeing done on the way the traffic on the road operates, or in thedevelopment of safety on the road.

Noon program: 14:00-16:00 hrs.

The next discussion topic is the status of accident registration. Pakistanpeople often see no reason to report an accident if they believe that theaccident was not premeditated. Therefore, there is large underreporting ofminor and non-fatal accidents.

Inspired by discussions with Tom Granberg of Finnroad about this subject,Mr. Asif J. Khawaja identifies two factors that contribute to underreporting ofaccidents:1. In Pakistan comprehensive accident insurance is negligible.2. Most of the vehicles are not transported under the owner's name.

The relevance of this last factor is disputed by Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja.


Mr. Asif J. Khawaja also raises the questions with regard to the quality ofaccident reporting in the newspapers, and the possibility to use newspapersas a source of information on accidents. However, these issues are notconsidered very relevant by most of the audience.

Mr. Farooq Khawaja explains that accident investigation some 13-14 yearsback, had a higher quality than nowadays since both the Motor VehicleExaminer (MVE) and a traffic officer visited the site of the (fatal) accidenttogether. However, nowadays, the MVE - resorting under the Authority ofTransport Department - does not visit the site of the accident anymore. Infact, he has no means of transport to do this. The investigating officers getthe certificate of fitness from the workshop. Mr. Asif J. Khawaja is interested to hear from Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawajathe actions undertaken by the Lahore Traffic Police in the area of educationand guidance of school children.

Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja explains that fairly recently, traffic leaflets havebeen distributed among schools, and traffic quizzes have been organized inseveral schools. Moreover, on the initiative of the Traffic Police, some ofthe most important traffic signs and rules will be published in the nextversion of the Text Book for secondary school level as part of thecurriculum. The Traffic Police have also approached TV and radioauthorities to bring matters of road safety into the open. Currently, theTraffic Police are trying to establish a ‘traffic garden’ in Lahore where schoolchildren can receive some basic safety instruction.

Dr. Fawad Hameed Rai inquires into the attitude of the Traffic Policetowards cooperation with NGO's. Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja answers thatthe Traffic Police will gladly accept any help offered by NGO's.

Returning to the subject of enforcement, Mr. Haji Muhammad Hayatobserves that enforcement would be more successful if the traffic policepreceded enforcement activities with a teaching phase. During this, thetraffic police in Lahore would explain and model to road users in Lahorewhat type of traffic behaviour is desired. Mr. Khalid Farooq Khawaja can, inprinciple, agree with this and refers to the traffic weeks organized by thepolice in the past.

Mr. Khalid Farooq expresses his hopes that the study by Mr. Goldenbeldwill also give insight into the possibilities of re-organizing the Lahore TrafficPolice in order to make better use of available resources. A more mobile,better educated force, with more staff of senior rank, would certainlycommand more respect among the road users. Enforcement is a two-wayprocess: if road users have more respect towards the traffic police,enforcement will be more effective.

Mr. Haji Muhammad Hayat suggests that the tenure of the DIG TrafficPolice should be 5 to 6 years. Without being that specific, Mr. KhalidFarooq Khawaja agrees that there should be some continuity in the job. Mr.Farooq recounts some of his experience with traffic policing on thehighways some years back, and the recent successes of the Motorway


Police. The Traffic Police in Lahore have to move towards higherprofessionalism. The answer lies not so much in more manpower. Rathertraining, reduced working hours, better service and working conditions areneeded to reach a higher level of professionalism.

A question is put forward to the representative of the World Bank, Mr. N.Qureshi, as to the intentions of the WB with regard to the present project.Mr. Qureshi briefly explains that the Word Bank is expecting a report fromthe consultant with an agreed upon strategy for the short-term and medium-term and with recommendations for the Province of the Punjab as a whole.Mr. Qureshi is also looking forward to receiving a summary of theproceedings of the workshop.

In the end of the afternoon, the discussion veers back to the topic of morestringent licensing procedures. Mr. Haji Muhammad Hayat expresses thestrong interest of the Pakistan Motor Transport Federation in setting up adriving school for commercial drivers. Under the right conditions (e.g.amendment to legislation), the Pakistan Motor Transport Federation mayeven be willing to invest money in such a venture. This opens up thepossibility for public/private partnership in this respect. Mr. Qureshi invitesMr. Goldenbeld to explore this potentially fruitful avenue.

Mr Khalid Farooq Khawaja extends his thanks to the participants of theworkshops and closes the meeting.

8.9. Report of the 7th May Seminar

Seminar on Road Safety Component of the Lahore Urban Transport Project

In total 45 persons attended the seminar.Sr. No./ Name/ Designation/Department (in sequence of entry)1 Sardar M. Humayun Khan, Executive Board Member Association of

Road User of Pakistan (ARUP).2 Khushal Khan, Traffic Engineer. 3 Peter ter Meulen, General Manager ITC - Holland.4 Ghalib-A-Bandesha, SSP (HQ), Punjab Traffic Police.5 Rana M. Iqbal Khan, SP Traffic, Faisalabad.6 Mian A. Nawaz , Manager Adamjee Insurance Co.7 Javaid Zaman Khan, Chairman Traffic Task Force.8 M. Sarfraz, Deputy Secretary Excise & Taxation.9 Shahzada Hamid, DSP/Legal Traffic Police Department.10 Mohammad Akram Khan, Inspector Legal Traffic, H.Q. Punjab.11 Mohammad Afzal, Highway Engineer, MMP.12 Aamir Mahmood, Highway Engineer, MMP.13 Tariq Rafiq, Director P&D, L.D.A.14 Sardar M. Amin Khan, Director, Transport Consultant Pegasus

International (ARUP).15 Dr. Abdul Rahim Khan, UN.16 Col (R) Masud ul Haq, Business, Retired army officer.17 Shakir Imam, Business. 18 Javaid Anwar, Business, Engineer.19 Navaid Qureshi, Team Leader, World Bank.


20 Amer Durrani , Transport Specialist, World Bank.21 Lt. Cdr. Shaukat Ali, SP Traffic, Multan.22 Ch. Mohammad A. Zaheer, General Secretary Road Transport Workers

Federation.23 M. Javaid, Manager Lahore Transport.24 Brig. Anis Ahmed, Chairman, LUTP.25 Haseeb Athar, P.C / TM, LUTP.26 Ch. Muhammad Hayat, General Secretary Pakistan Motor Transport

Federation.27 Mohammad Arshad, Chief Executive. 28 Jahandar Khan Banth, Under Secretary Law Department.29 Dr. F Hameed Rai, Training Manager, HELP(NGO).30 Dr. Ajmal Magsi, SSP. Motorways. 31 Dr. Ghulam Abbas Anjum, Secretary Transport. 32 Raja Hassan Abbas, C & W Dept.33 Syed Mahmood Javed, Additional Secretary EPD.34 Lt. Col.(R) Latif, MCL.35 Lt. Col.(R) Shuja, MCL.36 Abdul Ghaffar, CAW Dept. 37 Dr. M.Shahnawaz X-Ray, Dept Punjab Institute of Cardiology.38 Dr. Mohammed Khurshid Alam. 39 Dr. Waqar Chaudhary, Chief Reporter APP Associated Press of

Pakistan.40 Khalid Farooq, DIG, Police. 41 Irfan Ahmed Daha, Minister of Transport Government of Punjab.42 Khalid Alvi, Deputy Director TEPA.43 Munawar Butt, Staff Reporter Khabrrian Newspaper.44 Rab Nawaz Khan, Social Worker. 45 Charles Goldenbeld, researcher SWOV Institute for Road Safety

Research.

All the participants received a a) 10-page length seminar-file containing theagenda of the meeting, b) the 7th May draft plan for the Road Safetycomponent of the LUTP, c) the outline of the presentation by Mr.K. Khan, d)a copy of the press interview with Mr. Peter ter Meulen about road safety(reported 5th May in the International News, Lahore Edition), and e)information about health and safety initiatives by the NGO HELP.

The agenda for the seminar was:1. Opening by the Chairman, Mr. Altaf Qamar, DIG Traffic Police Lahore2. Speeches by:

Mr. Ghalib A. Bandesha, SSP HQ Traffic Police Lahore; Mr. Peter ter Meulen, General manager, ITC, Netherlands; Mr. Khushal Khan, Traffic Engineer Lahore; Mr. Sardar M. Humayun Khan, Representative ARUP (NGO); Mr. Tom Granberg (Finnroad, Traffic Engineer).

3. First general comments on the received proposal4. Discussion with regards to specific issues

Coffee/tea break


5. General conclusions by the Chairman6. Statement by the Honourable Minister of Transport7. Closing statement by the Chairman

End of the Seminar

Lunch at the Sunfort Hotel

Opening address at seminar on Road Safety on May 7th, 1999, by Mr.Ghalib A. Bandesha, SSP Headquarters Traffic Police Lahore.

I am Ghalib Ali Bandesha, SSP/Traffic, HQRrs: Punjab and on behalf of theDIG/Traffic, Punjab Traffic Police and the Dutch Institute SWOV welcomethe distinguished participants to the Seminar on Road Safety.

Today’s Seminar is sequel to the series of steps already taken likeinterviews, discussions at workshop on Road Safety, held on April 17, 1999,since the arrival of Dutch Consultant Mr. Charles Goldenbeld on 24th March1999 in connection with studies pertaining to the Road Safety Componentof the Lahore Urban Transport Project (LUTP). I owe my special thanks tothe representatives of the World Bank in Pakistan, who allocated hugeamounts from the trust funds for the studies, and for their keen interest inthe quality and outcome of the studies.

I would avail this opportunity to thank the honourable guests who sparedtime for the consultants and provided valuable inputs while discussing theRoad Safety issues.

As per available statistics, 2 persons on an average die or are seriouslyinjured daily in an accident in the city of Lahore only. The vulnerable roadusers are pedestrians, cyclists, and users of non-motorized and motorisedvehicles. This state of affairs sends a strong signal to the people at thehelm of affairs to take cognisance, and improve the road safety situationaccordingly. The common perception is that discernible chaos is only due tothe poor enforcement of the traffic police. Strict enforcement campaigns dohave limited results and bring in temporary change in the behaviour of theviolators, but permanent attitudinal change can only be brought if the road’slanguage is candid and clear, controlling the behaviour of the user, and thepublicity and media campaigns leave a lasting message in the memory ofthe user. In-depth analysis divulges that road safety is a discipline which isdirectly proportional to the road design, road furniture, education of the roadusers, driving skills of the drivers, and finally the training, motivation,knowledge, and better equipping of the enforcers of the laws on ground.

Road Safety warrants a multi-agencies approach and integrated efforts ofall the key players like Highways Department, Development Authorities,Health Department, Education Department, Excise and Taxation Depart-ment, Transport Department, and Traffic Police. We have to negotiate aturn, a giant leap in the right direction, by redefining and re-emphasising therole of each player in road safety, and co-ordinating their activities at aforum with a view to develop a common outlook, and achieve the desiredgoals.


Today’s seminar is being held with a view to evolve a consensus on theissues pertaining to Road Safety.

We have also requested the honourable Minister of The Transport Depart-ment of the Punjab to be the Chief Guest at the closing ceremony of theSeminar. He has kindly consented to be with us.

Beside presentation of an Implementation Plan by Peter ter Meulen, twospeakers will read their papers on the issues pertaining to Road Safety, andthen an open discussion will follow.

Before we start the introduction round of participants, I request DIG/ Mr.Muhammad Altaf Qamar to preside the meeting and conduct the businessof the Seminar. He is requested to present the summary of the proposalspertaining to Road Safety to the participants at the conclusion of theproceedings.

Presentation by Mr. Peter ter Meulen, General Manager of the Institute ofTraffic Care

I am pleased to see so many faces here today. It shows that there is a realinterest in the subject of road safety in Lahore. Concerning road safetythere is a battle to face and it is a real battle. Since I have been here, I haveread several papers and documents on the subject and I have visitedseveral scenes in the city. I know that important initiatives towards roadsafety have already been undertaken in the last year. The traffic policehave proposed needed changes in the legislation. Also, there has been abriefing paper about the road situation, prepared by TEPA and TrafficPolice, for the chief minister.

I arrived here with good optimism and with the expectation to discuss thingswith those responsible for road safety. We succeeded in this; after the firstintroductions, we had talks up to the highest levels.

There are a lot of problems here and also unique problems. The problemshave also to do with corruption, and the corruption is not only inside thetraffic police but is more widespread. I have been a police officer myself for30 years and I know that for discipline on the streets, we need a trafficpolice force that has integrity and authority, and that is open to the public.The police need to be respected by the public and also to respect thepublic.

However, if I see the current working conditions of the traffic police, I canonly describe them with the word ‘inhuman’. The police have to work 16hours per day and 7 days per week. They have to do their work standing intraffic, in the scorching heat and the polluted air. As regards enforcementactivity, the traffic police have poor training, poor instruments, and a poorattitude. Also, there is a lack of law and clear infrastructure making goodenforcement possible.

If we raise our children, we have to set clear rules for them. It must betotally clear for them what they can and cannot do. After giving this clarity,


we as parents sometimes have to correct behaviour with punishment. Thesame goes for road users. It must be 100% clear to them what they can andcannot do in traffic. For this, the infrastructure must present clear guidance,and clearly the government is responsible for a good infrastructure. Thepoliceman cannot enforce the traffic rules if the roads are not clearlydesigned, well constructed, and well maintained.

It cannot be tolerated that road users feel free to do whatever they want intraffic. Draconic measures are needed to change the whole approach. Iknow there are many high quality people in the field of road safety here inLahore, but there are too many islands. To improve the situation,cooperation between important stakeholders is needed. To me it is asurprise that the traffic police are not in any way involved in thedevelopment of important road projects. They have to work on the newroads after their completion, and are held responsible for traffic problemson these roads. In the Netherlands, the police are involved in majorinfrastructure projects in an advisory capacity. From their long experiencewith traffic in the streets, the traffic police can foresee traffic problems andadvise on possible solutions.

The traffic police in Lahore can bring back some discipline on the streets,but they cannot do this alone or without proper support. First, a lot of thingshave to be done. There must be a change in infrastructure and there mustbe change in legislation; the fines have to be upgraded.

In the long term, we also have to work towards a change in the trafficmentality of the future generation. To do this we have to start with ourchildren and teach them traffic sense both at home and at primary schools.Important is that we speak to children in their own language.

For traffic education, investment is necessary. But the responsibility fortraffic education lies not solely with the Government. It is a sharedresponsibility of the stakeholders; the schools, publishers, and parents, andthey have to work together to achieve this.

One of our first proposals is to set up a steering platform that will make aroad safety policy for the next five years. In this platform, all stakeholdersare united, including the traffic police. It is very important that in thisplatform, stakeholders accept each other on the same level as an equal. Inthe design of new road projects, the steering committee should be involved.

Of course the major change needed is a change in the mentality of the roadusers. When I look at the mentality of the Lahori drivers, I see the WildWest in America. There is simply no respect for another driver, cyclist, orpedestrian. I can understand this for a part. What else can we expect ifthere is no knowledge, skills or attitude among drivers? Everybody can gethis driving license very easily. In general, driving exams are fake andtheory exams not taken; there are some exceptions. The authorities issuinglicenses should realize their important responsibility in this area. Theyshould take their responsibility and work towards improvement of thissituation. In the future, the Ministry of Transport may be the proper agencyto take over the responsibility in this area.


A large part of the problem lies with the commercial drivers. They areinvolved in 70% of the road casualties. On the other hand, it is realized thatthese drivers perform an important commercial function. It is clear thatthese drivers have to pass an exam, and that they have to go to get someform of driving education.

For the present project the Traffic Police Lahore took the initiative and theWorld Bank made it possible. Based on the total work, the SWOV institutewill make recommendations and describe a plan in a report that will besubmitted to the Punjab Government.

An important part of the plan is of course the money, the budget. Where willthe money for road safety initiatives in the future come from? For this wehave proposed a paid parking system. The car drivers themselves have topay for road safety. Part of the parking and enforcement fees will be re-channelled into road safety and into instruments and knowledge of thetraffic police. I think it is a wonderful thing when those who use the roadspace and create the problems also pay for the safety.

In our plan, we start with a pilot-project with clearly visible short-termresults. If we select important traffic routes in Lahore and change theinfrastructure (the road signs, the lane markings, the stopping signs, thespeed limit signs etc.) we will be able to train police officers this year. Thenwe have to cut the working hours of the selected and trained police officersto normal standards, and upgrade their salaries to the level of the motorwaypolice. Then we can be assured of traffic police officers who are not corrupt,proud of their task, aware of their function and their authority, friendly to thepublic, but strict in their enforcement.

Yesterday I was invited by the Chief Minister of the Province of the Punjabto discuss matters of road safety at his residence. The Chief Minister gavehis support to the plans we would like to present to you today. Today we willget your input to the plan, and in the next two weeks we will furtherelaborate the plan and present it to the World Bank who will present it to theGovernment of the Punjab.

If we achieve consensus about this plan and if the main stakeholders hereare willing to cooperate, we are willing to put a lot of our effort and energy inthis project to make it successful, and to make it an example for the wholeof Pakistan.

Presentation by Mr. Sardar M. Humayun Khan, Member of the ExecutiveBoard of the Association of Road Users of Pakistan.

Distinguished guests and fellow participants, Aslamalaikum.

I see wide, well-paved roads with a steady stream of orderly traffic movingat an unimpeded speed in both directions. I see well-marked lanesseparating the fast moving traffic from the slower two wheeled motorcycles. I see public transport moving at a safe speed on the left lane andstopping at dedicated locations. I see drivers obeying the traffic lights at themajor junctions with no policeman in sight. I see meaningful road signs to


help guide me to my destination, and when I get there I easily find parkingspace for my vehicle.

These images are a sincere desire to see my city rid of the harmful anddangerous environment existing on its roads. We are all so well aware ofthe problems and difficulties that confront us each time we use the roadsystem. The tension and frustration are not only limited to the poor qualityof the road surface, but also due to the disregard of traffic rules by roadusers which makes it so unsafe for each and everyone of us. The heavyfumes and the load noise that are serious pollutants on the city road ways,are yet another cause for concern.

The problems are many and are daunting. I am most concerned anddisturbed (as I am sure you share these concerns) that the situation isdeteriorating instead of getting any better. This scenario is indeedfrightening. I, as an private individual, have two alternatives - either toaccept the present situation quietly and let my family and I continue takingour chances in the deteriorating conditions, or to take on the challenge andmake every effort to try and bring about an improvement. I am no specialistin the complicated art of the traffic management, but just a road user! It ismy profound desire, as a citizen, to see that the problems and difficultiesexisting on our roads are removed. With this in mind, I joined theAssociation of Road Users of Pakistan, which was established in October1998. I am one of the founder members and a member of the ExecutiveBoard. It may be pertinent to give a brief background of this NGO, whichwas encouraged and sponsored by the World Bank.

As we all know, the poor maintenance of the road system is an acuteproblem in our country. The road surface deteriorates quickly due to thesub-standard construction and improper use of the network, which is directlycaused by the overloading of vehicles. You should not be surprised that alarge number of countries in the world have problems similar to ours. Inorder to address the critical situation, the World Bank took the initiative over40 year ago to provide assistance to the countries adversely affected. Itbecame apparent from the onset, that one of the main reasons for thecontinuation of these problems was the lack of involvement of the users inthe various stages of road development projects. While road users arerequired to contribute substantially towards the cost of maintaining roads,they are excluded from its planning, decision making, management, andimplementation.

The World Bank already has in place National Highway ImprovementProgrammes and has established a Highway Maintenance Fund in almost40 countries around the globe. In Pakistan, it was only recently that theNational Highway Authority, with the assistance of the World Bank,launched this programme to try and address the pressing issues of roadmaintenance together with safety.

The object of the Highway Maintenance Fund is to generate sufficientmoney to be exclusively used for the maintenance of existing roads. Theunique nature of this proposal is to control, manage, and disburse fundsthrough a transparent procedure where road user participation is


guaranteed. In fact, in almost all countries where this fund is operating, theChairman of the Road Maintenance Fund is from the private sector.

In this context, the Road Safety component of the Lahore Urban TransportProject could benefit from the participation of the newly-formed NGO (andof course, other responsible NGOs) which has on its agenda the improve-ment of road conditions and safety throughout the country. I stronglybelieve that the citizens and the authorities responsible for traffic manage-ment will make a collective and concerted effort to correct the situation inthis lovely city. The Citizen and Police Liaison Committee established inKarachi over 15 years ago, is working well. With innovative style and boldinitiatives this arrangement has achieved commendable results. I suggestthat a similar liaison committee could be introduced in Lahore, where theroad safety becomes a part of its agenda.

I repeat myself that the problems are well known and cover a widespectrum. Efforts have been made in the past to improve the situation, butit is most unfortunate that conditions have deteriorated considerably ratherthan improvement being brought about. In the past, local and foreignexperts and consultants have analysed the conditions on the ground andhave written a number of relevant reports on how to correct the problems,but for whatever reasons, not much has been achieved so far. I wouldcertainly not wish to see this present opportunity go down the same track.We, unfortunately, seem to have a record of coming up with soundproposals, but we founder when we get to the implementation stage. Thishas happened so many times in so many other projects. I do not wish tosound pessimistic, but we should guard ourselves against such aneventuality.

I am somewhat heartened to see so many determined faces here today andin the workshops convened last month at the Municipal Corporation’sJinnah Hall and at the Four Seasons Restaurant. The participants were notas many as one would wish for, but it was a start, and I can only hope thatwith continued and determined efforts of all the participants here today, weare able to motivate our colleagues and others to join us in this noblecause.

The success of this programme can be assured only if road users andstakeholders jointly participate with the government and the organizationsinvolved in traffic management. Prominent citizens, large and medium sizebusiness concerns, responsible NGOs, transport associations, and in fact,any road user willing to participate for the betterment of safety on our roads,should be welcomed. Lady participants, who have so much influence athome, especially with the younger generation, must be given specialconsideration to become part of this crusade.

Education and enforcement of traffic rules are necessary, but it would be somuch easier if all road users shoulder their responsibilities in a benefitingmanner. It is in the interest of al concerned to ensure that a healthyenvironment exists on the network of roads in the city (and subsequently allover the country) not only by enforcing, but also by willingly regulatingourselves to be responsible users of the road system. We seem to overlook


the most obvious condition for achieving success, and that is by correctingand regulating ourselves. We enjoy correcting others (whatever the subjectmay be) but we tend to ignore correcting ourselves first.

The negative attitude of the public towards responsible usage of road net-work, in my personal opinion, is one of the main reasons for the sorry stateof affairs. The mutual disrespect of the private citizen and the publictowards each other, is a major factor contributing to the continuation of thissituation. Should we let this unfortunate and unnecessary state continuewithout doing anything about it? I sincerely hope not. I hope that this timewe are seriously determined to start the long process of turning the tide.

I would not wish to go into the technical details and proposals laid down bythe present programme, as there are a number of professionals who willoutline them for you. These proposals cover numerous areas that need tobe addressed, but I would certainly wish to highlight one single topic, whichin my view is very important. It is probably the most difficult item to tackle,but once achieved, it would be the most effective of all the tools available tous - and that is to make every endeavour to bring about a positive changein the present ATTITUDE of the road user.

It is easier said than done. How are we going to do this? This will require along and concerted effort (at least a generation or two). Besides the use ofeducational institutions, we have a powerful media available to us whichunfortunately, is not being used. The TV is present in almost every home. Aprofessional media manager would be able to chalk out an effectiveprogramme, but it is important that besides the direct approach of showingcommercials etc., a subtler approach would be more effective in the longrun. The message of road safety could be got across through plays,dramas, and talk shows, to name a few. I can give the example of Brazil,which has run a TV campaign (besides other proposals), for over 30 years,covering family planning. In this campaign they have made use ofplaywrights and dramatists to depict the hero or heroine as the person withsmall families. They have shown in their plays and dramas the virtues of asmall family. The theme of these plays emphasizes that successful personscome from such small families. This indirect approach took a very long timeto achieve its results, but it did eventually.

This was just a single suggestion. There are a large number of otherproposals and actions that need to be taken on simultaneously. Do we havethe will and the patience to start them now and continue with them with everincreasing determination over the years? I certainly hope so, as much is atstake. If we proceed jointly together and with complete determination, wewill command success.

Absence of Tom GranbergThe next person scheduled to speak about road safety in Pakistan was TomGranberg, traffic engineer from the consultancy firm Finnroad and workingin Pakistan for over two years. Mr. Goldenbeld explains that Mr. TomGranberg was very motivated to appear at the seminar but wasunfortunately not able to book a flight from Islamabad to the seminar.


Outline of the open table discussion following the presentationsMr Qureshi, project leader from the World Bank, proposes to keep thediscussion focussed on the road safety plan presented in the seminar file.

Mr. Peter ter Meulen briefly elucidates point 1 of the plan, the establishmentof the steering committee. He states that the steering committee shoulddetermine the road safety policy for the city for a period of about 5 years.

The first question raised by a participant is who will establish the steeringcommittee who is to lead the project. Mr. ter Meulen answers that, in hisview, the Lord Mayor is the man to head the steering committee in the initialperiod. However, the chairman of the steering committee may be changedafter a certain period of time, say after six months. Essentially the mainstakeholders have an equal position in the steering committee, and it is upto them who will be the chairman. It is important that there is transparencyin the decision-making process of the steering committee, and that theinputs from the various stakeholders in the committee are used to bringabout a more efficient way of approach to road safety. The traffic police,who have daily experience in traffic, must be allowed to play a strongadvisory role in the steering committee.

One participant expresses concern about the size of the steeringcommittee. If all stakeholders are to be involved the committee will be verylarge.

Mr. ter Meulen answers that the committee should not be too big and shouldhave about 10 to maximum 15 members. The key government trafficsectors should be represented by about 7 or 8 persons and there should belikewise a cross-section from the private sector. In the committee thereshould be one representative of the municipality, one of the traffic police,one of the courts etc.

The DIG Traffic Police, Mr. Altaf Qamar, adds that the composition of thesteering committee is to be decided in the future.

Dr. Abdul Rahni Khan raises the question what would be the basis for thepolicy to be followed by the steering committee. Mr. ter Meulen answersthat basically, the yardstick for the policy of the steering committee is thereduction in the number of road casualties.

Mr. dr. Abdul Rahni Khan follows up with a question of how thedevelopment of land use in Lahore and the subsequent growth in tripgeneration are taken into account in the road safety plan. Mr. ter Meulenanswers that of course the steering committee will be using availableinformation about recent developments in the city in its decisions aboutroad safety measures.

The question is asked how the present road safety plan will relate to theCity Master Plan. Mr. Durrani, representative from the World Bank, answersthat the present road safety plan will melt fluently into any plan the city mayhave. The road safety plan is intended to bring about a positive change in a


well-described demonstration area in the city, and it does not in any wayconflict with existing plans.

One of the participants remarks that it is important to look at both macroand micro levels of the traffic problem.

Mr. dr. M. Khursid Alam Khan Arbab calls to attention that more effortshould be put into making existing footpaths accessible to pedestrians.

Then the discussion veers towards the parking policy in Lahore. Mr. JavedZaman, Chairman Traffic Task Force, points out that legally, newly builtoffices are required to have sufficient parking space available to incorporatetheir tenants. Mr. Khushal Khan points out there is, at the moment,sufficient parking space in Lahore.

Mr. Khalid Farooq states there is a implementation problem with theregulation of parking space. The maps for new building, including the areasdesigned for parking, have been approved by LDA, but the actual buildingor actual use of the parking space is not going according to plan.

Mr. Peter ter Meulen expresses that he has a very good feeling about thediscussion. Since time is short and valuable, he urges participants to focusagain on the plan at hand.

One of the participants comments on point 9 of the plan (centralization andcomputerization of the vehicle registration system). He states that theExcise and Taxation Department in Lahore already is in the process ofcentralizing and computerizing vehicle registration for the whole province ofPunjab and is also providing owners of vehicles with water-marked numberplates.

Mr. Peter ter Meulen answers that the ambition is to have a centralized andcomputerized vehicle registration for the whole of Pakistan. It is remarkedthat constitutionally, vehicle registration falls under the domain of theprovince rather than the nation.

Mr. Khalid Farooq states that the plan should be very clear about short termand long-term requirements, and about financial requirements.Furthermore, he hopes that the plan will also consider re-organization of thetraffic police.

Mr. Peter ter Meulen answers that the costs for the total plan will besomewhere between 10 to 20 million US $. Mr. Amer Durrani puts thisamount in perspective by saying that the construction of one underpass willamount to 350 million Rupees.

As regards re-organization of the traffic police Mr. Peter ter Meulen answersthat specific recommendations in this regard should be first discussed withthe current DIG Traffic Police, Mr. Altaf Qamar.

One of the recommendations with regard to the traffic police is to grant thetraffic police the authority to investigate accidents. Mr. Khalid Farooq


expresses his doubts concerning this point. If the traffic police have toinvestigate every accident, they will lose a lot of time in court proceedingsand be away from the streets. Mr. Peter ter Meulen answers that it is not theintention of the plan that every traffic officer would be investigating everyaccident on his beat. The plan is rather that a specialist team of accidentinvestigators should be formed within the traffic police, who only investigatefatal accidents. A well-trained, knowledgeable small group of investigatorscould work very efficiently and improve the knowledge of police andgovernment about the existing road safety situation.

Mr. Ch. Muhammad Hayat, General Secretary, Pakistan Motor TransportFederation, expresses his satisfaction with the current laws and procedures.The police officer on the spot decides who is at fault. In the case that thereis a fatality, there is also insurance.

Part of the plan is upgrading of the fines. One participants expresses hisdoubt concerning this measure on the grounds that often drivers are notowners of the vehicles. Ideally, drivers at fault should be put behind bars for3 to 4 hours. Mr. Peter ter Meulen answers that the owner of the vehicle canbe held responsible for the technical state of the vehicle, but not for thebehaviour of the driver. If the driver commits a traffic violation, he shouldget an appropriate fine for his behaviour.

Break

Dr. Shahnawaz, cardiologist, resumes the discussion with expressing somedoubts about the safety potential of the legal measure making seat belt usemandatory. From his experience, speeding is not a problem in the city. Thebest road safety measures in his view are those that restore the normal flowof traffic. The road safety proposals in the plan should reflect more the localrequirements.

Mr. Peter ter Meulen explains that there can be no doubt about the generalsafety benefit of making seat belt use mandatory. In both Europe andUnited States this road safety measure has been among the mostsuccessful measures taken. Mr. ter Meulen agrees that the road safety planshould be sharply attuned to local conditions. He explains that the severalelements of the plan should fit together like a puzzle. He stresses that infollow-up discussions step-by-step measures should be worked out for bothprovincial and local level. It is extremely important, in the view of Mr. terMeulen, that good discussions should result in decisions, and that decisionsshould be followed up in practice.

Mr. Khushal Khan corrects the viewpoint that there is no speeding in theLahore. He observes that on several roads, e.g. Main Boulevard Gulberg,violations of the speed limit are common.

Mr. Khalid Farooq emphasizes the importance of helmet wearing bymotorcyclists. In Lahore, ten to fifteen percent of the vehicles used aremotorcycles, and most motorcyclists do not wear helmets. Attention to thisproblem should be given in the plan.


Mr. Amer Durrani states that motorcyclists actually comprise 25% of theLahore traffic. Given the Pakistan climate, the half helmet format would bethe most comfortable and attractive helmet format for Pakistanimotorcyclists. At the moment, however, there are no proper legalcertification standards for these helmets in Pakistan.

Mr. Khalid Farooq points out that there is no proper transport policy inPakistan. There is no consideration by policy makers about what type ofcommercial and personal transport is suitable for a particular city. In theabsence of such policies, the traffic police ultimately have to face theproblems caused by the mix of different transport modes. In the future, weshould work towards a national and provincial transport policy establishingwhich kinds of transport should be encouraged or discouraged.

For instance, part of a national transport policy should be the arrangementof transport for college students and school children. In Lahore, well-knownas the ‘City of Colleges’, you will see 1000 private cars bringing students tothe colleges along major roads. At the national level, the Governmentshould make a plan for the transport of these students.

The Minister of Transport agrees with Mr. Khalid Farooq that buses shouldbe provided for the transport of students, but it is the colleges themselves,rather than the government, who should provide these services.

One of the participants points out that official government vehicles shouldbe fitted with seat belts and that officials may start giving the right example.

Mr. dr. M. Khursid Alam Khan Arbab points out the necessity of excludingslow-moving, animal-driven traffic, or keeping this traffic restricted toseparate lanes. Furthermore, he recommends there should be clearspecifications for road breakers better known in Lahore as ‘car breakers’.

Mr. Ch. Muhammad Hayat, general secretary of the Pakistan MotorTransport Federation, recommends that a strict law should be imposed onthe operation of tractor trolleys. Tractor trolleys are illegally operated dayand night in Lahore, and especially in the night hours they are poorly visibleand constitute a veritable road hazard.

Mr. Khalid Farooq points out the importance of the advisory role of thepolice. The traffic police had advised against the measures intended tosegregate slow and fast moving traffic on Circular Road. As foreseen by thetraffic police, the separate lane for slow-moving traffic was soonencroached upon by shopkeepers, and the traffic police were in practiceunable to enforce use of right lane by slow-moving traffic. A practicalproblem with enforcement of animal-driven vehicles is the absence of adriving license. In practice, the police men started meting out directpunishment to the driver by beating him with a stick.

A further important component of the road safety plan should be thevisibility of cyclists during night-time. Reflectors and lights on bicyclesshould be part of the plan.


As the last speaker during the discussion, Mr. dr. M. Khursid Alam KhanArbab again draws attention to the need for banning slow-moving traffic outof parts of the city. Furthermore he urges to restore the tradition of usingspecial horse bags to keep horse droppings from falling on the roads andmaking them slippery and dangerous.

Closing address by the Minister of the Department of Transport of theProvince of Punjab.

I greet Mr. Muhammad Altaf Qamar, DIG/Traffic, Punjab and the otherdistinguished participants coming from various departments and walks oflife. I have the privilege to address the august audience of the seminar onroad safety arranged by the Punjab Traffic Police and the Dutch instituteSWOV.

I had a meeting with the Dutch consultants a couple of days ago, anddiscussed the issues pertaining to road safety. I was told that theconsultants have met all the key players regarding road safety, and that aworkshop has already been held on the subject. The views of all thestakeholders have been taken care of, and an implementation plan hasbeen presented in the seminar for further discussion. This generated a livelydebate amongst the participants. The views expressed in this exercise willhelp in ultimately improving the infrastructure, educating the public, andbetter enforcement of laws, so that chaos and disorder is replaced bydiscipline and order on roads.

I assure the participants and Management Committee of the seminar thatthe political will, absolute resolve, and firm commitment of the PunjabGovernment is with you in formulating the final strategy for making theroads safe for the road users. The Chief Minister is very serious about theLahore Urban Transport Project and gives utmost importance to this project.

Finally I thank the DIG/Traffic, the Management Committee of the Seminarfor their invitation to be the Chief Guest, the Dutch Consultants for theirefforts, and the participants for their valuable suggestions.

goldenbeld termeulen lahorereport a 2000 03

Documents

road safety strategy

road safety researchp

road safety plan forlahore

traffic safety seminar

traffic safety matters

traffic safety issues

level of safety awareness

provision ofroad safety