Blockage of U-Turns and Smaller Roads Make Commuters’ Lives Difficult

 Hyderabad: The closure of U-turns on arterial roads and blocking of the smaller roads in the interiors are causing wastage of time for commuters in Hyderabad, sparking chaos and frustration among drivers, The lack of organised traffic management in the city has resulted in impacting daily commutes.

At many places, the U-turns on the main roads are typically located every kilometre or two away. Just one closed U-turn forces commuters to drive 400 metres long.

To make matters worse, the police have been blocking smaller interior roads such as the stretch near Srinagar Colony, opposite the Heritage Supermarket.

On the Ameerpet road, the U-turn was extended with barricades. Those who want to go to Lal Bungalow, will have to travel till Maitrivanam for taking a U-turn as the one at KLM Shopping Mall was blocked.

Reacting to such unscientific blockages, Maruthi Prasad, a commuter. said, “This leads to chaos because no one knows which roads are closed or open and the reasons behind the closures remain unclear.”

People aver that U-turns function well on bigger roads, but they create more congestion on smaller roads.

“Since people in Hyderabad don't follow lanes, the traffic situation gets worse. Sometimes, the U-turn is located after one kilometre, which causes more delays as people wait on the road for a longer time to take the turn. The closure of U-turns is not an effective solution,” said Santhana Selvan, an IT professional from Madhapur, adding that the U-turn in Lakdikapul opposite the Public Gardens is an absolute mess.

“This situation affects lower-middle-class individuals who depend on small wages as people have to burn more fuel as they are on the road for a longer time,” Selvan said.

Another commuter Rupesh Singh says the Liberty to Tank Bund is another congested road, where police have blocked the right turn. "Travelling from Liberty to Tank Bund has always been difficult. But, of late, it feels like there are even more vehicles on the road, causing even more longer delays. Traffic police never cared to announce traffic rules except when a celebrity or politician comes. They must consider problems faced by commuters before taking any steps,” he said

The idea that closing U-turns will prevent wrong-side driving is helpless. In fact, wrong-side driving has increased because people try to avoid driving longer to take a U-turn, and switch to the wrong side, said Deeksha Reddy.

The police, however, were unwilling to address this issue. High-ranking officers also did not respond to queries from Deccan Chronicle on this issue.

Barricades places at near Srinagar colony, Yousufguda