Missing stop lines, malfunctioning lights take shine off Mohali’s new traffic management system

More than 10 days after Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann launched the City Surveillance and Traffic Management System amid much fanfare, basic features such as functional traffic lights, line markings, and zebra crossings are missing at most of the intersections.

Around 15,000 e-challans have been generated till date but many intersections still lack proper stop lines. Chief among those are the Landran T-point, the Phase-7 light point, the Sector 90-Phase-8 T-point and the IISER Chowk.

Road users and activists are questioning the hurry in implementing the Rs 21.6 crore project amid Greater Mohali Area Development Authority, Punjab Police Housing Corporation and Municipal Corporation’s seeming lack to preparedness in ensuring the basic infrastructure.

Chetan Sehgal, a local, said, “The authorities need to provide basic infrastructure before they start handing out challan slips.”

Several road users pointed out that Sector 62-63 light point near a private hospital is malfunctioning frequently, causing confusion in the movement of vehicles. “The construction work that has left debris alongside the road has been dragging on for months now. Dust in the area is another hazard,” one of the commuters said.

On the Airport Road, commuters also flagged the newly laid but inverted signboards.

The system, which has been in development since February 2024, missed three previous deadlines—September, November, and January 2025—before being launch on March 6.