Andhra Pradesh: Bike Racing in Visakhapatnam Poses Serious Risk to Citizens

Visakhapatnam: Bike racing enthusiasts in Visakhapatnam are causing a scare within citizens. Every weekend, there are hundreds of youngsters engaging in high-speed racing and risky stunts. Sometimes, there are three or four riders on a single bike weaving in and out of traffic.

What had once been confined to the city's suburbs has now spread to the main streets in the heart of the town. Their “snake riding, speed riding, zigzag driving, and single-handed with single-leg driving” is causing concern among other road users.

When contacted, district traffic commissioner G. C. Raja Ratnam had met city police commissioner Shankar Brata Bagchi. The traffic commissioner told Deccan Chronicle, "City police will coordinate and tackle this problem as a team, just as we deal with drunk driving."

Bike racing is popular among students and young employees. The coordinate on platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram and Twitter to exchange racing-related information.

The dark side of bike racing is the fatalities it has led to. To check this, city police set up special check posts on weekends. Yet, the racers remain the daredevils, gathering at locations like Bheemili, Rushikonda and Simhachalam BRTS Road. They would coordinate on social media, gather, race and return by different routes within an hour; all when police surveillance is minimal.