One of the first things impressed upon me when I landed in the U.S as a fresh off the boat student, was never to jaywalk. Completely unfamiliar with the concept, it took a while to sink in that I could be fined for crossing the road unless at designated spots. Back then I never questioned the logic.
Sumana, CAG's article on the lack of public transport information in Chennai, and whether transport apps come anywhere close to solving the problem. Republished in Citizen Matters.
Every now and again an article pops up telling us that the day is not far when humans will live on the Red Planet. This is not, the writers insist, something out of an Isaac Asimov book or the ramblings of a Star Trek fan. In my mind whether the human race is technologically close to achieving trans-planetary habitation is not the question as much as whether we should be trying to do this when we’ve been such poor stewards of planet Earth.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that public transit in Chennai is fragmented, poor in service quality, and dying a slow death in the last two decades. Certainly the patronage numbers would support this with modal share dropping over the last few decades, concomitant with an increase in the modal share of private vehicles.
More than 50% of vehicle drivers in Thiruvarur district were found not adhering to the helmet and seatbelt laws, says a compliance audit conducted by CAG recently. With Tamil Nadu topping the charts for the highest number of annual road crashes consecutively for the fifth year in 2020, it is important to lookback, learn and redefine our road safety management practices. This study also recommends next steps for proactive enforcement and road safety management in districts of Tamil Nadu.
“Two wheelers and cars speed upto 75 kmph in major arterial stretches of Chennai city” says a study by CAG that highlights the concerns of speed management in the city through evidence based cases. The report also outlines priority areas to reduce speeding threats. Read to know more!
Bipedalism (standing upright on two feet) is considered the crucial marker of human evolution. Walking, whether on a pilgrimage or as a mode of protest (think Dandi or Selma), is invested with significance, with an aura, a purpose. The effort, the impetus behind walking, the motivation that propels these walks are recognised as something special.
Every year the third Sunday of November marks the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDoR) to commemorate the numerous lives lost in and impacted by road crashes.
As we look to a new year, we imagine a different Chennai - a Singara Chennai - in how we approach issues of water resources, solid waste, mobility, road safety, and energy.
CAG's 2021 Brand Audit sought to understand which companies create the maximum plastic waste. Interestingly, unbranded plastic contributed to a quarter of the plastic waste audited followed by well-known brands like Unilever, Aavin, and Britannia. Over 90% of the plastic waste produced by companies such as Unilever, Nestle, and Mondelez for example, are made of non-recyclable plastics - an indication of brands disinterest in making their products truly sustainable.