Making two-way of major roads on the cards

Making two-way of major roads on the cards
Wednesday May 9 2007 10:42 IST

BANGALORE: The ever-increasing vehicle population and consequent traffic troubles have prompted the traffic police to take a fresh look at the one-way system on the arterial roads.

A team of experts, which conducted a traffic study in the backdrop of increasing traffic bottleneck, has suggested the reversal of one-ways on certain busy roads in the city.

Some roads earmarked for two-way included, Richmond Road, Residency Road and St Marks Road.

This is expected to ease traffic woes on linking roads like Museum Road, Lavelle Road, Rest House Road, Convent Road and Macgrath Road.

Chief Traffic Warden M T Nayak told this website's newspaper reversal of one-way system would help certain roads, especially Richmond flyover.

Citing the example of JC Road, he said that in 1995, it was made anti-clockwise and three months later it was changed to clockwise, which eased the traffic a lot. “Similarly, there are eight major intersections on Richmond flyover and making it anti-clockwise will ease the traffic,” he said.

Traffic system calls for changes from time to time, he said.

“One-way system was neither a panacea nor a final solution to traffic problems. Bangalore is basically an unplanned city and planners are trying to give it a good infrastructure. The concept of one-way came as a vision to make the Bangalore city like Singapore,” he remarked.

Bangalore roads have the capacity to sustain 10 lakh vehicles, while the number has reached 30 lakh.

DCP Traffic West Ramasubba said there was no rigid policy to follow one-way or two way. “It entirely depends on the convenience of the commuter. Reversal of one-ways can help on certain roads. No changes will take place in the West zone,” he added.