Lingering Smart City works cause persistent traffic jams in Srinagar

Srinagar, May 16: There seems to be no respite for the commuters in the summer capital as the lingering Smart City works have created traffic bottlenecks on major roads.

The commuters said persistent bumper-to-bumper jams have become a routine, and navigating the city has been a nightmare.

Multiple projects, mostly executed by the Srinagar Smart City Limited, are in progress across Downtown and other parts of Srinagar. The commuters said that as the projects are going on simultaneously and at a slow pace, it has hit the traffic flow causing inconvenience to them.

“The dug-up roads, dumped material, and ongoing construction have created traffic bottlenecks. Commuters are finding it hard to navigate amid huge traffic flow, we are stuck in jams for hours,” Azhar Ahmad, a commuter said.

During various ground visits over the past few weeks, it was found out that the city continues to be dotted with traffic bottled necks. Among these bottlenecks, the majority are present in Dalgate, Nowpora, Noorbagh, Parimpora, Khwajabazar, Khanyar, Nishat, Nawab Bazar, Karan Nagar, Nowgam, and other areas.

An official from traffic police acknowledged that the issue has crippled traffic and has also made traffic management difficult.

“The ongoing projects are indeed a challenge for us. We are hopeful that these issues will be addressed so that we will have streamlined traffic,” said that official.

The commuters said that the ongoing construction at Downtown, including Khanyar, has narrowed the road, creating a bottleneck. They said likewise that the slow work at Dalgate Bridge by the R&B department has created another bottleneck at Badyari Chowk. During various interviews with commuters, they said that major roads have bottlenecks that hinder traffic movement.

During a ground check, this reporter found out that in addition to Downtown and Dalgate, there are traffic bottlenecks in Noorbagh, Parimpora, where the road is not completely fixed. In places like Khwajabazar, there is pending work on blacktopping while the work on the Nowpora stretch is also ongoing.

The Khanyar stretch near the Police station is also incomplete. This reporter also found out that the work near Hr. Sec. School Khanyar is yet to be completed. The work at Nishat, Nawab Bazar, and Karan Nagar stretch is also ongoing. Officials said these bottlenecks, coupled with fresh construction at Jahangir Chowk, have crippled traffic, and once these are completed, the traffic flow will be smoothened.

An official said that the incomplete work at Parimpora and the service roads of the under-construction flyover at Nowgam have also created bottlenecks, which have affected the traffic flow in the uptown.

Chief Engineer, SSCL Qayoom Kirmani said that the black topping work and other construction is ongoing at various places simultaneously. He said that the department is working overnight to complete the work as soon as possible.

“The work on the Karan Nagar SMHS stretch is ongoing and will be completed soon. At Nawab Bazar, blacktopping is ongoing, and likewise, at Nishat, we are working currently. There are multiple places in Downtown where we are working on drainage. We will keep the speed up to ensure that issues are resolved within the least time possible,” Kirmani said.