The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : No relief from traffic chaos at LB Nagar

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Wednesday, Mar 19, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

No relief from traffic chaos at LB Nagar

Marri Ramu

Reduced rotary is of little help as vehicles from all directions stop close to it

Photo: Mohd. Yousuf

Danger zone: Motorists throw rules to the winds at LB Nagar.—

HYDERABAD: After the size of the LB Nagar rotary was reduced, everybody thought the junction would be free of traffic chaos. But congestion and confusion continue to reign supreme here, thanks to the callous attitude of the officials concerned.

Faded zebra crossings, no stop lines, absence of foot-over-bridge, continuous stream of vehicles from all directions and criss-crossing by seven-seaters that stop at their will, cause hardship for pedestrians and vehicle drivers here. On an average, nearly 20,000 vehicles cross this rotary during the peak hour, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. If these figures are enough to daze a person, the fact that 43 per cent of them are heavy vehicles explains how maddening the traffic would be.

Despite so many heavy vehicles moving, there is no lane marking. As a result, vehicles, especially seven-seaters, try to criss-cross only adding to the congestion. With no stop lines, vehicles coming from all the four directions stop close to the rotary not paying heed to the signs of the traffic policemen.

This creates confusion with commuters coming from one direction running into those coming from the side roads. “Though a policeman is posted on each side, they are unable to control the hundreds of vehicles coming at a time,” a businessman Venkataiah of Dilsukhnagar feels.

Reduction of the rotary’s size has created additional space for the vehicles to move around the rotary. But this benefit is negated with the RTC and private buses and seven-seaters halting close to the junction. With the RTC booking counter located within few yards of the circle, buses halt there.

If a Vijayawada-bound bus stops at the junction, vehicles coming from Uppal and Dilsukhnagar going towards Vanasthalipuram are forced to stop. For pedestrians, crossing the road from one end to the other is a harrowing experience as the stream of vehicles never stops.

FoB needed

Heavy vehicle drivers don’t bother to stop when people try to make use of zebra crossings. With most of the zebra crossing marks faded, it has become all the more difficult to cross the road here.

A foot-over-bridge is badly needed here. It would not only check accidents, but also make flow of vehicles obstruction-free saving lot of time.

The traffic police say they have sent proposals for building foot-over-bridges at three places, but the civic officials are yet to react.

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