Hyderabad: Decorative lights blind commuters

Hyderabad: Sparkling lights may not be a very bright idea, after all. The round decorative lights, part of the facelift done recently for the World Telugu Conference (WTC), put up alongside traffic signal lights on the roads of Secunderabad are irking the public more than delighting with the dazzle. More importantly, commuters are getting confused and distracted from traffic light that helps them navigate and maintain a smooth flow of traffic.

People have been complaining about how the lights are very similar to traffic lights leading to a mix-up, and even the strong beams blinding them at some points. The traffic police realised this after residents complained to them.

Hyderabad Traffic police have now decided to remove them. No accidents, however, have been reported because of this specific issue so far.

Sharing his experience, Tito George, a private employee from Punjagutta said, “I regularly take a cab from home to office near St. Johns’ Road in East Marredpally. Ever since the lights were insta-lled beside the traffic lights, I noticed cab drivers getting confused on whether to move when the light was green or stop for the adjacent one that flashed red. This has happened twice with two different cabbies.”

“The bright lights are blinding for commuters. The other day when I was returning ho-me to Somajiguda during rush hour, the beams from these lights left me uncomfortable and were blinking repeatedly, resulting in my vehicle brushing with another bike,” sa-id Karthik Murali, a tec-hie from Himayatnagar.

Speaking to DC, Joint Commissioner of Traffic, V. Ravinder, said, “The lights should not confuse them as they do not have red, green or yellow in them. However, we have instructed our officers to avoid confusion, if there is any.”
A senior traffic police said, “We have not re-ceived any cases or co-mplaints on this iss-ue so far. But if it helps the public, we will look into it and do the needful.”

The WTC (Prapancha Maha Sabhalu) is currently on in the city and will conclude on December 19. A large number of Telugus from across the world have flown in to take part in the convention. The twin cities have worn a festive look with some of main roads and venues decorated with night-lighting.