Lane DisciplineMV Act 2019, Section 120 – driving against traffic flow fine ₹500–₹1,000; Section 184 if reckless

The Wrong-Way Shortcut

Rule: Never drive against traffic flow (wrong way) even on one-way lanes or medians; fine ₹500 + seizure risk

One-way lane near Karol Bagh, Delhi

Meena drives 300m against traffic to avoid a 1 km detour — 'Yahan sabhi karte hain idhar.'

→ Head-on with a motorcycle; bike falls, rider bruised. Cops arrive. Auto impounded, ₹5,000 fine, licence production notice.

✓ Lesson: 'Everyone does it' describes the frequency of the risk, not the legality or safety of it.

Same area, next week

Meena takes the 1 km detour on the correct one-way route.

→ Adds 4 minutes. She uses a navigation app that already accounts for one-ways.

✓ Lesson: Navigation apps know one-ways — turning on routing guidance makes the right path the easy path.

Auto permit renewal office

The wrong-way incident is on her record. Officer notes it, adds a mandatory safety lecture before renewal.

→ Meena attends the lecture, learns that wrong-way accidents kill disproportionately due to combined approach speeds.

✓ Lesson: Traffic records follow drivers — a single violation can complicate future renewals and insurance.

Test yourself with scenario-based questions from real Indian roads.

Drive in the left lane; use right lane only to overtake; never straddle lane mar…

Do not swerve suddenly across lanes; signal before every lane change; check mirr…

Use indicators for every lane change and turn; activate at least 30m before the …