Over 700 licenses suspended by Pune RTO between Apr ’23 & Jan ’24

According to officials, the number of driver’s license suspensions for traffic offenses by the Regional Transport Office (RTO) in this fiscal year has already surpassed that of the previous year. 750 licenses in total were suspended from April 2023 to January 2024. In 2022–2023, 564 licenses were suspended in response to this.

When compared to the total number of traffic infractions that the traffic police have recorded, the number of driving license suspensions is still much lower.

For instance, in the calendar year 2023 (Jan to Dec), a total of 10.33 lakh traffic violation cases were registered.

The state transport department has issued orders that suspend a driver’s license for three to six months after six infractions. While driving while intoxicated carries a six-month license suspension, reckless driving, speeding, signal jumping, using a phone while operating a vehicle, overloading goods vehicles, and transporting passengers in non-transport vehicles result in a three-month license suspension. The traffic police redacted 11,739 instances of talking on the phone while driving, 14,433 cases of driving on the wrong side of the road, and 66,733 cases of signal jumping in 2023. 

Speaking on the phone while driving, which also led to license suspensions, is currently a big concern, according to senior traffic police officers.

Using a cell phone while driving is one of the most dangerous offenses, according to a senior Pune Traffic Police officer. Because it may cause multiple accidents as a result of drivers’ distracted attention, it is concerning. As a result, they act quickly and make sure to issue tickets to these violators.

A vehicle rider stated that the authorities needed to do more. They witness a lot of people driving while using their phones and not wearing helmets. There are extremely few suspensions. More stringency is required.