Going after selected offenders in different parts of the city, the Capital City Traffic Police have turned the rampant offences under the 1967 Motor Vehicle Ordinance into a source of over 100 million rupee revenue, with a 30 per cent cut for the police, it is revealed.

For the last seven years, the traffic police have come up with different drives to enforce the rule of law on the streets, particularly by the motorcyclists as being the only stoppable offenders, while largely overlooking smoke-emitting vehicles.

The existing ‘traffic violation ticket’ system was introduced in May 2001 replacing the old system of producing offenders before the traffic magistrates to ascertain the fine for flouting any particular traffic rules and regulations. Traffic cops allege that the current ticketing system discourages bribery amongst the ‘white cops.’

During the old traffic magistrate days, according to the former traffic police chief, the annual revenue under the traffic fines head was ranging somewhere between nine to 10 million rupees. Now the seven year-old ticket system for traffic violation has raised the revenue more than 1000 per cent.

Though the provincial government keeps the lion’s share of about 70 per cent of the amount collected as traffic fines through designated branches of the National Bank of Pakistan, however, 30 per cent of the revenue is given back to the police for investing in their service delivery and office work. The former DIG Traffic, wanted 50 per cent of the revenue for the traffic police.

According to the traffic police, the ticket-issuing cops are entitled to get the 5 per cent of the traffic police department’s share. “We are not regularly paid that promised cut from the revenue generated through our hands,” complains an ASI. “This time we received an accumulative amount for the last several months.”

“We have just received the money as our share for 2700 violation tickets that our traffic section issued last year,” says the in-charge of a traffic section in an upscale neighbourhood, wishing not to be named. “We are supposed to get our cut from the traffic fine revenue on a yearly basis, however, it always gets late.”

Every traffic section of each of the city’s traffic zones maintains a daily log of its performance in terms of the total number of traffic violation tickets issued by the police officer attached to that section. “We keep such records posted to SSP and DIG office for future reference as well,” says a senior officer.

As per the existing system, the provincial government receives about 70 per cent of the money, the exchequer gets from the traffic violators, whereas only 30 per cent is split into two heads and invested into the traffic police system one way or the other.

Of this 30 per cent payable to the traffic police, the half is meant for maintenance of vehicles and office work, whereas the rest is distributed to the staff of the traffic police sections. Tax deduction for welfare fund is also done at the stage before it goes to the staff.

“Interestingly 5 per cent of this 15 per cent exclusively goes into the pocket of the ticket-issuing officers,” informs a traffic police officer. “This reward formula was employed primarily to encourage police to bring the violators to the task instead of inciting them to pay bribe.”

This enticement of cash flowing into the pockets of poorly-paid traffic cops the most legal way really encouraged the traffic police officers to take every traffic offence into consideration for possible ticketing but the delayed reward payments dampened their spirits to large extent.

On the other hand, traffic wardens, who can’t book any traffic violators by virtue of their assigned tasks, can be seen hanging around in the company of at least one entitled traffic cop at different spots after the dusk. They lurk round the corner of a busy traffic-signal just to get hold of motorcyclists and red light jumper to extort money.

“They are in Saddar, next to the Iranian Café near Lucky Star, at the traffic lights ahead of Clifton Bridge and Teen Talwar pretending as if they’re after violators but they’re indeed after money from the so-called offenders,” commented a regular motorist on the same route. “We see it so frequently that it has become a routine.”

And to top it all, the traffic police are never seen impounding the offensive vehicles such as rickety smoke-emitting buses of the 1970s, brand new 4WDs without registration plates. “They don’t go for such penalisation as the system does not support them to do so,” says senior police officer. “Eventually it is all about making money, legal or otherwise.”