EDITORIAL
Speed governors can improve road safety only when functioning are regularly verified
The Supreme Court’s directive to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) to ensure strict compliance with mandatory speed governors in transport vehicles has brought Goa’s road-safety enforcement mechanisms under renewed scrutiny. This is particularly after official data revealed that 42 defective speed governors were detected among just 67 rent-a-cabs inspected up to August this year.
The findings assume significance in a state that depends heavily on tourism and has a substantial commercial transport fleet. Goa currently has 6,762 registered rent-a-cabs, while the number of taxis exceeds 22,000. We also have trucks and pick-up vans, among others. More than a decade after the government mandated the installation of speed-limiting devices in all public transport vehicles, the apex court on Tuesday directed the Centre, states and Union Territories to ensure compliance, as enforcement has been poor across the country. The provision mandates that notified transport vehicles manufactured on or after October 1, 2015, be fitted with a speed governor, with the maximum pre-set speed fixed at 80 kmph.
Goa’s year-wise inspection data shows that 520 rent-a-cabs were inspected for speed-governor compliance between 2021 and August 25, 2026. Of these, 42 vehicles were found to have defective devices, while no cases of tampering, bypassing or disconnection were recorded. The authorities collected Rs 99,000 in fines during the period. This year, of the 67 vehicles inspected up to August 25, as many as 42 were found to have defective speed governors, representing approximately 62.7 per cent of the vehicles examined during the year.
The figure must be interpreted cautiously. The 67 vehicles in 2026 constitute only about one per cent of Goa’s total rent-a-cab fleet. Therefore, the defect rate cannot be extrapolated to the entire fleet. However, the concentration of defects in a relatively small inspection sample warrants a more comprehensive investigation. In the inspection data since 2021, the 42 defective devices account for around 8.1 per cent of all 520 vehicles checked. The sudden increase could reflect more targeted inspections, changes in enforcement procedures or an actual deterioration in device functionality.
Vehicles found exceeding the prescribed speed limit are detected through the Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS) and speed radar guns. Fines are imposed based on these detections. The Supreme Court, meanwhile, stressed that compliance must be ensured when transport vehicles are sold by dealers.
For Goa, effective implementation need not undermine tourism. Although an 80-kmph limit could marginally increase travel times on certain highway stretches, much of the state’s road network passes through congested settlements, commercial areas and busy tourist corridors where traffic conditions already restrict speeds. Speed governors cannot prevent every crash, but they can help reduce excessive speeds and the severity of collisions. Their effectiveness, however, depends on proper calibration, maintenance and protection against tampering.
The state could strengthen enforcement by digitally linking each speed governor to a vehicle’s registration and fitness records, including installation and calibration details. With 6,762 rent-a-cabs and over 22,000 taxis on Goa’s roads, the challenge is not merely to impose more penalties but to ensure that safety and consumer-protection regulations work in practice. For a state whose economy depends on the safe movement of tourists and residents, effective enforcement could improve road safety while strengthening public confidence in commercial transport.
