DMP relaunches spike device to stop cars on wrong side

Dhaka Metropolitan Police again installs a spiky device on Shaheed Mansur Ali Sarani in Dhaka to check driving on the wrong track. — Ali Hossain Mintu

The Dhaka Metropolitan Police relaunched ‘Protirodh’, a device used to prevent vehicular movement on the wrong lane, on a city road Friday night, nearly six months after it was removed 12 days after its initial launch.
The device – a metal plate with retractable sharp spikes – was set up on Shaheed Mansur Ali Sarani in front of the DMP headquarters at around 10:00pm Friday night, as a test case.
Earlier the device was first set up on Hare Road in front of the state guest house Jamuna on May 22, which had to be removed on June 4 due to ‘technical difficulties.’
DMP officials said the pins on the device will puncture the tyres of any vehicle using the wrong lane, while the pins will sink if vehicles are on the right side.
DMP’s joint commissioner for traffic Mosleh Uddin Ahmed told New Age the device had malfunctioned earlier as it had not been able to take the load of vehicles using the right lane.
This time the device had been constructed stronger to bear the load of heavy trucks, he said.
‘We have introduced the device as a test case and if the experiment succeeds for one to two months, it will be installed on other roads in the capital,’ he added.
The device has been produced by Sohel Metal and Engineering Company and invented by engineer Jahan Alam, using local technology.
The device is 30 feet in length and 13 inch in width, with a total of 179 spikes. It cost more than Tk 5 lakh to build.

Source: Newage