The ministry of road transport and highways(MoRTH) will soon move to the quality-cum-cost based selection process for bidding of various road projects instead of going for L-1 or the lowest bidder process to improve the quality of construction, road transport minister Nitin Gadkari said.
“Ministry of roads will soon be adopting qualitative tendering process instead of the least cost bidding process to bring in quality and road safety in various projects,” Gadkari said at the International Road Federations’ event on Vision Zero – Targeting road safety by 5E’s, jointly organised by the ministry of road transport and highways and Maruti Suzuki.
“Qualitative tendering will help incorporate safer road safety features in designs keeping in mind the behavior of the road users,” he added.
According to Gadkari, there have been several cases where officers in the ministry have done away with safety features in highway projects to bring down costs and in the name of making them financially viable.
“Road engineering is the biggest culprit for increasing road accidents in the country. Hence, road engineering solutions must be taken care of while preparing the detailed project reports (DPR),” he said.
KK Kapila, president, emeritus, International Road Federation (IRF), said promoting a safe transportation system requires a holistic approach including engineering of roads, engineering of vehicles, enforcement, education and emergency care.
“The successful implementation of the 5 E’s in road safety results in increased awareness, safer road infrastructure, better compliance with traffic laws, encouragement of responsible behavior, and continuous refinement of safety measures,” he added.