Government to develop 'rest areas' for drivers on national highways

In order to promote road safety and avoid accidents due to long and incessant driving on national highways, the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) has decided to develop wayside amenities including rest area for drivers and road users.

The rest area facilities are proposed to be made available under Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode for which interest has been invited by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

The announcement was made by the minister of state for Road Transport & Highways, Pon Radhakrishnan at the Rajya Sabha yesterday. NHAI has been developing facilities like toilets at toll plazas, rest areas and truck parking locations on national highways. Additionally, incident management vehicles such as patrol vehicles, ambulance and crane facilities are also provided on highways. 

Moreover, the government will be carrying out road safety audits at different stages like feasibility stage, design stage, construction stage and pre opening stage for ensuring safety. Tightening of safety standards for vehicles like seat belts, power steering and ABS are being stipulated by the ministry for improving safety on national highways.

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