Mumbai’s new towing vans can tow everything from Nano to BMW without scratching
Picture Courtesy: Akash Rumade
If you have been driving or riding in Mumbai for sometime now, chances are that you vehicle has been towed a few times. And unless you were completely oblivious to the number of scratches on your car or bike, chances are you’ve found some new ones after you got your car back from the traffic police.
While the recklessness on the part of the person towing the vehicle is a factor, one can’t refute the fact that the towing vehicles we have in the city aren’t exactly equipped to tow every vehicle, especially without causing any damage.
However, the city traffic police has acquired some high-end towing vans to haul the more expensive vehicles without damaging them.
The department has put special hydraulic cranes on 80 vans, 40 for cars and 40 for two-wheelers, which will allow them to tow vehicles with ease and minimal human intervention.
The process of replacing old towing vans began on October 1.
The newer vans, equipped with the hydraulic cranes, can easily tow high-end BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar, Audi cars and SUVs among others.
The older vans could not tow these vehicles till now, because of which the department relied on the use of clamps. While the clamps were effective in terms of not inflicting any damage, they were redundant if the vehicle was blocking the road.
Each crane will also have a CCTV camera installed, which will allow it to capture the exact location and position from where the vehicle was towed.
The traffic police have also developed an MTP app through which they will upload images of the vehicle as soon as it is towed. Citizens can simply call the MTP helpline (8545999999) and get the details of their towed vehicle.
While speaking about the development, Joint commissioner of police (traffic) Milind Bharambe said, “There were many complaints of cars getting damaged during towing. That’s why the traffic police were hesitant to tow high-end vehicles. Adamant owners of such vehicles and the traffic police’s reluctance to touch expensive cars resulted in traffic jams,”
“These new cranes will allow us to lift cars from the Nano to the Mercedes and BMWs,” he added.
