The Hindu : Kerala / Kochi News : Chaotic condition at junctions

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Friday, Nov 07, 2008
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Kerala

Kerala - Kochi

Chaotic condition at junctions

John L. Paul

Narrow roads, encroachments, unchecked parking are leading to such a mess

Photo:H. Vibhu

TRAFFIC BOTTLENECKS: Most junctions in Kochi are unplanned, creating huge traffic snarls. A scene from Kadavanthra Junction. —

KOCHI: The chaos at the busy Palarivattom bypass junction best symbolises the state of affairs at junctions in the city. Most of them are narrow and do not have free-left lanes and reserve lanes for vehicles intending to take a turn to the left and right sides.

Two years ago, the National Highways Authority of India spent Rs 27 lakhs, just to widen the free-left turns at the bypass junction. Still, commuters have to wait for at least 10 minutes during peak hours to cross it. This is mainly because the free-left turns on all four sides continue to be narrow, with vehicles waiting for the signal often blocking them. An official of the PWD (NH wing) which executed the widening job said that they faced political pressure when the agency sought to acquire land from some landowners to widen the free-left turns. Problems at narrow junctions are compounded by the fact that bus stops on either side of the road are located right at the junction. This prevents the smooth progress of vehicles that get the green signal. The result – they get stranded on the middle of the road, further affecting the flow of vehicles from other sides. The situation is particularly bad in junctions like Kadavanthra, Elamkulam, Vytilla, Thevara, Shenoy’s and Padma.

Faced with inaction on the part of the Corporation of Cochin and the PWD, the City Traffic Police carried out a study on relocating the bus stops. The reforms are awaiting implementation. Further, most bus stops do not have bus bays, with the result that buses often park on the middle of the road.

Sufficiently-wide junctions turn narrow when vendors encroach on them. Planned junctions like the one at Vytilla have considerably narrowed down because of encroachment by vendors and the presence of six autorickshaw stands in the available space.

Unchecked parking at junctions and near U-turns makes matters worse. The traffic police proposal to rope in sponsors for putting up no-parking boards in different places ran aground following opposition from the Corporation. No junction in the city has ‘stop bays’, the line beyond which no vehicle awaiting the signal should cross.

Pedestrians are among the worst affected because of unplanned junctions. Most junctions in the city do not have pedestrian crossings. The pedestrian-warning lights at electronic signals do not function most of the time. This forces pedestrians to cross at random, causing accidents.

The Corporation’s plan to widen junctions and beautify them has been hanging fire for around a decade. Mayor Mercy Williams said that things would improve once the City Mobility Plan is implemented. “Though the draft is ready, the formal presentation and discussion in the Council are awaited. Some funds would have to be earmarked for acquiring land.”

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