The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has implemented mitigation measures for the safety of national highway (NH) users in order to counteract reduced visibility caused by foggy conditions on the NHs throughout the winter season. According to NHAI, these mitigating strategies fall into two categories: “engineering” and “safety awareness” measures.
Reinstalling missing or damaged road signs and road studs, repairing faded or insufficient pavement markings, installing reflective markers and retro-reflective yellow stickers on road safety devices like metal beam crash barriers, and implementing safety measures on construction stretches like barricading and diversion signs are some of the engineering measures.
Safety awareness initiatives emphasise actions to notify NH users about low-visibility conditions due to fog. These include deploying variable message signs (VMS) or digital displays to show ‘Foggy Weather Alerts’ and reduced speed limits, activating public address systems to caution drivers in foggy zones, and leveraging electronic billboards, radio broadcasts, and social media for public announcements.
NHAI field units have also been instructed to conduct weekly nighttime inspections of highways to evaluate visibility levels and pinpoint spots needing extra safety features. Highway patrol vehicles will be positioned along heavily fog-prone sections, equipped with flashing batons to direct traffic. Additionally, officials and workers must wear reflective jackets during all highway operations.