Srinagar city to have 56 new bus-bays, addl parking lots: Nasir

Excelsior Correspondent

SRINAGAR, May 8: In order to streamline ever-increasing vehicular movement in summer capital, Minister of State for Home, Nasir Aslam Wani, today directed Traffic Department, SMC and SDA to immediately operationalize 56 bus bays and 6 parking lots which have been identified at different spots.
The Minister issued these directions at a high-level meeting which was attended by the DGP, Kuldeep Khoda, Principal Secretary, H&UDD, Suresh Kumar, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Dr Asgar Samoon, IG Kashmir, S.M Sahai, IG Traffic, Muneer Ahmad Khan, DIG Traffic, Shafkat Watali, Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, Baseer Ahmad Khan, Transport Commissioner, Mehraj Kakroo, Commissioner SMC and VC SDA, G. N. Qasba, Chief Engineer R&B, Kashmir, Mushtaq Ahmad, Chief Town Planner, Kashmir, Iftikhar Hakim, RTO Kashmir and Joint Commissioner Works SMC.
The Minister issued instructions to all the stakeholders to regulate city traffic and initiate strict action against defaulters. “The mindset among people has to change. Gone are the days of roadside parking. We have identified nearly 56 spots for bus-bays at pressure junctions so that traffic is managed in a more effective way. In first phase, 35 bus-bays will be made functional by June this year. Additional shelter sheds in consonance with city ambience will be constructed. Once bus stops and bays are operationalized, their use will be maximized and any deviation or violation will be strictly dealt with,” the Minister said.
The R&B Department is constructing 15 out of the 56 identified bus- bays in Srinagar city. The rest will be constructed by SMC and 35 of these will be ready by June this year.
Urging the Traffic Department to ensure that North and South Axis of Srinagar city are not frequently choked, the Minister stressed on putting in place a comprehensive mobility plan to address frequent traffic jams. He asked Commissioner, SMC and VC SDA to coordinate with Traffic Department for smooth regulation of vehicular movement.
To accommodate the growing number of vehicles within the city, the Minister asked VC SDA to make parking lots fully functional. He issued instructions for prominent signage of parking slots, bus-bays and no parking zones in Srinagar city for easy identification. The VC was asked to come up with action taken report within 10 days.
The Minister asked SMC to monitor big shopping malls so that these reserve their basements or ground floor for car parking. The Minister said that adequate manpower has been provided to manage traffic in and out of the city. He called upon traffic police to ensure that flow of vehicles is smooth and traffic laws are obeyed and offenders are booked. He said the all footpaths should be cleared of encroachments so that pedestrians can walk freely.
To manage flow of traffic in and out of the city, the Minister was informed that two corridors have been selected for installation of Traffic Signal System. The first corridor from Airport to Sonawar Chowk will cover 17 intersections while the second corridor from Panthachowk to HMT Chowk will cover 14 intersections.