KOCHI: Bad roads, heavy monsoon and the surge in the number of vehicles, especially four-wheelers, have made the city roads choke with bumper-to-bumper traffic every day. The claims of the City Corporation, Public Works Department and the Metro agencies on road repair in reality did not help in decongesting the city’s roads. Though some of the city roads have been re-laid, it didn’t help as many other roads are in poor condition. Some of the worst-hit stretches are Janatha to Vyttila along Sahodaran Ayyappan Road, Kadavanthara junction, Vyttila junction, Kaloor, Desabhimani to Kaloor, Ernakulam South and North, Edapally and Thaikoodam to Pettah. It takes long hours to pass these busy stretches during peak hours.
“Transporting and unloading goods is getting delayed regularly for several hours. We have to burn more fuel to drive through these packed roads but are given no extra money. Time and money are being wasted on a regular basis,” Gireesh Kumar, a goods auto driver in the city. Delay in completing the annual road maintenance works coupled with the heavy monsoon have made commuting through the city a nightmare. Vehicles from the eastern and southern parts of the district enter the city mainly through SA Road. When vehicles get stuck at the barricaded and narrow Kadavanthra junction, the entire stretch gets blocked. Private bus operators are forced to cut trips as they fail to stick with the time schedule.
“We are unable to follow the time schedule during peak hours, especially when it rains. Though some of the roads have been repaired, it has not helped as other roads are in poor condition. It took more than 30 minutes to reach High Court junction from Boat jetty whereas the normal running time is less than 7 minutes. Sometimes, we end the trip by 8.30 pm while the usual timing is 7 pm,” said Shivashankaran Pillai, a private bus conductor. Students and women who return home after school and office are really worried about the regular traffic congestion. “The bus which usually comes by 5pm at Kadavanthra from Kaloor bus stand is now often late by nearly an hour. I reach home by 8 pm and am concerned for my safety,” said Sherly Babu, who works in a private office in the city.
