No roundabout way; traffic lights, flyovers better option

Traffic lights at roundabouts

Traffic chaos can certainly be overcome through flyovers and underpasses as has been experimented in big cities with positive results. As an alternative, traffic lights should be added at the roundabouts. Let the administration lay out more cycle tracks and an allowance be paid to those who pedal down to work.

Harish Kapur, Chandigarh

Construct flyovers, encourage car pooling

Going in for construction of flyovers will be a better proposition instead of the installation of traffic lights after demolishing the roundabouts. The Administration should encourage car pooling. Also, heavy traffic should be restricted during peak hours and the odd-even numbers formula can also be experimented with on a trial basis.

Hardeep Singh Slaich, Mohali

Build underpasses at roundabouts

Installation of traffic lights at roundabouts without removing them is a good option which is already working successfully at major traffic intersections on Dakshin Marg. Underpasses at roundabouts may also be tried.

Rajiv Sood, Chandigarh

Lay slip roads, stagger office timings

The Administration must lay down slip roads and install traffic lights on each roundabout and the traffic police on duty must ensure the smooth flow of traffic. The Administration may also consider staggering or changing the office hours of different government departments and educational institutions, besides upgrading local bus service.

Janeshwar Kumar Jain, Chandigarh

Flyovers need of the hour

Traffic lights additionally or otherwise ought to have been installed by now without fail at all such nuisance points besides widening the roads sufficiently wherever feasible. However, flyovers are the ultimate need of the hour. Feasibility of rationally different timings of Punjab, Haryana and UT offices, sector-wise banks and schools ought to be studied.

Sham Murari Sharma, Chandigarh

Traffic lights needed at roundabouts

Roundabouts need to be replaced by traffic lights for the orderly flow of traffic. It will reduce the number of accidents and also the pressure on the police which are deployed in large numbers at the roundabouts during peak hours.

Wg Cdr J S Bhalla (retd)

Flyovers, underpasses, car pooling required

We need to go for constructing flyovers and underpasses besides promoting cycling and car-pooling in the city. We need to augment the public transport system and, if need be, follow the Delhi even-and-odd formula. The idea mooted to demolish the roundabouts is lopsided and needs to be shelved for now.              

Ramesh K Dhiman, Chandigarh

Replace bigger roundabouts

For the fast movement of traffic, replace bigger roundabouts with a small police post in the centre besides traffic lights as a lot of time is wasted at these roundabouts. The police should also regulate the traffic on roads during the peak hours to minimise traffic chaos.

Col Balbir Singh (retd), Chandigarh

Mishap chances less at roundabouts

Chances of fatal accidents at roundabouts are less as compared to traffic lights where the motorists tend to speed up and jump red lights mindlessly, putting others in danger.

Ramesh Kumar Arora, Chandigarh

Roundabouts part of city’s status

Roundabouts are a part of the city’s status. Demolishing the same is not a solution to avoid traffic chaos, rather traffic lights can be placed on the roundabouts itself, which will definitely work.

Dr Vimal Chhabra, Mohali

Utilise road architecture as baseline

I believe we can utilise the Chandigarh road architecture as baseline. If traffic jam happens during the office hours, I suggest that one-way roads be demarcated in the city.

Anuj Sharma, Chandigarh

Rotaries as heritage symbol

Retain a few famous rotaries as heritage symbol and replace the rest with traffic lights. The presence of the traffic police should also be ensured at all main crossings during the peak hours to check the chaos, especially in case of power failure with manual system.

AS Ahuja

Proper time gap at roundabouts

Roundabouts should be demolished and traffic should be controlled through lights. Proper time gap should be set between green, yellow and red lights.

Balbir Singh Chadha

Abolishing roundabouts wrong

Abolishing roundabouts will be a mistake as it will slow down the traffic, adding to chaos. Early provision of Metro train service will ease the traffic and pollution.

Bharat Bhushan Sharma, Chandigarh

Replace roundabouts with traffic lights

Replacing all roundabouts in the city with traffic lights is a right move and will help in reducing the chaos and jams in the city. Construction of flyovers at major traffic congestion points such as Tribune Chowk, Sector 26 Transport Area and a few more is instantaneously needed.

OP Longia, Chandigarh

Flyovers required at busy points

The roundabouts may not be demolished but certainly flyovers are required at all busy crossover points, especially on the road leading to Ambala via Zirakpur. Flyovers could be constructed over the roundabouts and if required, the roundabouts could be shortened. The roads also require to be widened.

Rakesh Chaudhry, Ambala Cantt

Install lights at roundabouts

Traffic lights can be fitted alongside the roundabouts to streamline the traffic further at peak hours. Restricting the heavy vehicles on the city roads during the peak hours will also help.

Wg Cdr Jasbir Singh Minhas (Retd), Mohali

Cops should focus on traffic management

The traffic police in city need to get rid of their “challan happy” image and concentrate more on traffic management and traffic regulations. The traffic lights should be switched off at particular light points that experience heavy traffic at peak hours. Traffic should be managed manually.

Dr H S Walia

Allow need-based changes

Need-based changes in the present scenario must be adopted which means allowing flyovers and substituting roundabouts with traffic lights. Planning a Metro rail for the Tricity must not be delayed. The Administration must also consider limiting the number of cars in each household.

Wg Cdr DPS Bajwa (retd), Chandigarh

Admn should encourage car pooling

The state governments and the UT Administration should allot vehicles to their respective entitled officers on pooling basis. The private companies should arrange mini-buses for their employees. Besides, the replacement of roundabouts with traffic lights would also be helpful.

Balbir Singh Batra, Mohali

Separate lanes for slow moving traffic

Surely, if the big roundabouts in the city are demolished and traffic lights are installed, there would be some relief. Moreover, there should be separate lanes for the slow moving traffic like the rickshaws, bicycles, hand-pulled and horse-driven carts. The best of all propositions will be to build long flyovers in the city.

Rk Kapoor, Chandigarh

Roundabout demolition inevitable

Ahmedabad, the city of roundabouts, demolished them at major cross-roads but preserved a few of them by making them smaller and installing traffic lights. Sooner or later, even if anyone opposes, it will happen in Chandigarh too because no one wants to stop. Indian culture has become pretty competitive.

Dr Alok Jain

More manpower for  traffic cops

Traffic lights can be installed without demolishing roundabouts. Traffic police should manage traffic with more manpower.

Sandeep Kumar, Chandigarh

Tram car need of the hour

Destroying roundabouts is not a solution. Instead, they can be reduced in size in some locations. Tram car is the need of the hour. Traffic light timers also need to be adjusted as per the traffic variations.

Naveen Pathak, Chandigarh

Road users must  follow rules

Road users must follow the rules of the road meticulously. Very busy roads should be substituted with flyovers and underpasses.

Ujagar Singh, Chandigarh

One person, two  vehicles policy

The Administration should make a new law that one person can register only two vehicles in his name, including one four-wheeler and one two-wheeler.

Baljinder Singh Saini, Chandigarh

Underpasses needed

There is a dire need for constructing underway roads at roundabouts, which can curtail the journey time, and also pollution.

Naval Kumar, Mohali

Exclusive lanes

There is no need to demolish the roundabouts. To check traffic chaos, there should be exclusive lanes for public transport. Bicycle lanes should be utilised as visualised. Alternate roads should be followed by commuters to avoid traffic jams. Car pooling in true spirit also helps in solving the problem.

Kamalpreet Kaur, Mohali

One-way bus routes  during peak hours

Car pooling should be adopted, certain busy routes should be made one-way during the peak hours and all offices should declare one day in a week as no-vehicle day.

Rajeshwar Singh, Mohali

Introduce Metro

Instead of the demolition of roundabouts, why not introduce Metro rail in our City Beautiful?

Himanshu Chhabra, Chandigarh

Entry tax for cars

The only effective solution is to decrease the traffic from other states by imposing an entry tax on cars and impose heavy entry tax on trucks passing through Chandigarh to other states. The collected revenue can be used for cleaning the air.

Nazar Dhaliwal

Flyovers at roundabouts

There is no harm if the roundabouts are demolished and flyovers are built on some roundabouts where traffic chaos is maximum during the peak hours.

Anokh Singh Kahlon, Inspector (retd), Chandigarh police

Make lane driving compulsory

Underpasses should be built, compulsory lane driving should be introduced at roundabouts and the responsibility of officers concerned should be fixed.

Mashwinder Singh

Traffic lights at roundabouts needed, not demolition

Instead of demolishing roundabouts, traffic lights should be installed there.

Raman Badyal, Chandigarh

Adorn roundabouts with traffic lights

Big roundabouts should be adorned with traffic lights while small ones should be replaced with traffic lights.

Bhupinder S Sealopal, Mohali

Comment
UT Administration should act before it is too late
Nitin Jain
 

One may choose to flaunt it as a sign of affluence or brand it as the beginning of woes of the weary kind, Chandigarh has achieved the dubious distinction of matching the numbers of the humans inhabiting the city with vehicles riding its roads and streets.

According to Central government’s data, Chandigarh had 10.58 lakh registered vehicles on March 31, 2012. With both population and vehicles crossing the 11-lakh mark, the rich City Beautiful is in for poor life on the roads marked by waiting-at-the-wheel in worst-ever traffic snarls and the resultant chaos, especially at the roundabouts during the peak hours.

Even though the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana has come to have the highest number of per capita vehicles in the country—about 200 new vehicles are registered here every day—-the UT Administration continues to sit smug and has done precious little to deal with the problem. A problem fraught with serious proportions which may, sooner than later, find manifestation in increasing number of road accidents, many, if not most, turning fatal.

Having the highest per capita car ownership and vehicle density in the country, higher than mega cities like Delhi poses problems. The vehicle ownership rate in Chandigarh is not only higher than Delhi but also equals some of the richest cities in the Western world. Land-locked and book-ended by Punjab, Haryana and Himachal on the one side and Delhi on the other, the small city is now falling into the pincer grip of toxic air pollution, traffic congestion and heat-trapping carbon dioxide.

In 2010-11, Chandigarh logged an increase of 38 per cent in the number of vehicles as compared to 15 per cent in Delhi and 9 per cent in Bengaluru. Presently, Chandigarh has 227 cars per 1,000 people against 117 in Delhi. If you throw in two-wheelers too, the tally mounts to 878 personal vehicles for every 1,000 inhabitants against 362 in Delhi.

And if you add up all vehicles, Chandigarh has, hold your breath, 956 vehicles per 1,000 people, equivalent to the Western world’s motorisation rate. About 43 per cent of the households here own cars against less than 20 per cent in the national capital. Two-wheeler ownership is even higher. Official figures suggest that more than 4,000 new vehicles hit the city roads every month.

With no flyovers, under-passes or other pass-throughs in place, traffic snarls are on the up and chaos at its worst, especially at the roundabouts, during the school and office hours in the morning, afternoon and evening. Once a mark of beauty, these roundabouts have now come to be known as ugly spots.

Given the increasing load of vehicles, the city roads, gasping for breath, seem to have begun to say what everyone understands but does not want to listen, ‘enough is enough, can’t cradle any more’. In the past decade, the registration of vehicles has almost doubled. If 28,044 vehicles were registered in Chandigarh in 2000, the figure rose to 50,042 in 2010 and 51,259 in 2012. Alarming indeed!

Small wonder, congestion and pollution are wreaking havoc on Chandigarh’s much-envied urban design, says latest analysis by the Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The iconic urban design of Chandigarh, planned to avoid congestion and pollution, is now in danger of falling a victim to vehicular congestion. The city will have to reinvent sustainable modes of mobility to prevent choking on the roads, killer pollution, crippling congestion and fuel wastage.

The task stupendous but time is woefully short. The Chandigarh Administration must wake up and hunker down to the nuts and bolts of solutions. Any delay can be deadly and bring Delhi-like situation descend on us all.

 *The writer is Chief  City Reporter