Visakhapatnam: It's a bumpy, risky ride all along

Visakhapatnam:Potholes coupled with bad road conditions pose a risk to the commuters across the city.

As one sets out to cater to the daily needs, the bumpy ride makes commuting a horrendous task for the motorists to wade through the dilapidated roads.

From the long stretches of the National Highway to State Highway and Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) service roads and the ones in various neighbourhoods, the situation has only turned from bad to worse, testing the patience of the motorists.

According to the regional transport authority (RTA) officials, there are about 12 lakh vehicles in the district. Of them, 60 per cent of vehicles ply on the streets on a daily basis. Along with them, thousands of transport vehicles and goods carriers from other states pass through Visakhapatnam to different parts of the country.

Lack of maintenance followed by recent rains has converted even small pits into dangerous spots for the commuters to wade through. Despite the smart city tag, travelling along the city roads has turned out to be a risky experience for most of the motorists, two-wheeler riders in particular.

Along with the rain-battered potholes, pipeline works and UGD works carried out by Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) are another inconvenience experienced by the motorists as stretches of the digging work was left unattended.

For many, travelling at night turns out to be even more challenging. "A few days back, I had a narrow escape from an accident when I passed through a deep pothole in the night. Due to poor visibility, travelling at night has become riskier. Steps should be considered by the officials to address this grave problem before it becomes too late," opines G Ravi Kumar, a resident of Gajuwaka.

A number of potholes dot the routes of Gajuwaka, Aganampudi, Akkayyapalem, Kurmannapalem, Lankelapalam, BHPV, Auto Nagar, Gopalapatnam, Pendurthi, Kancharapalem, Poorna Market, Visalakshi Nagar and Arilova, among other areas.

Recently, the Jana Sena Party concluded a three-day-long campaign against the poor condition of the roads and uploaded the images of potholes and dilapidated roads on social media platforms.

With the government planning to develop the roads by next monsoon, many express concerns over the delayed response of the grave issue which actually needs immediate attention.

As the condition of the roads is posing a risk and leading to an increased maintenance cost of the vehicles, commuters opine that the authorities concerned should at least consider taking repair works of the roads on a war footing rather than waiting for the next monsoon.