City crawls at 8 kmph

Dramatic fall in average speed

As the city grows, traffic on the roads has reduced to a crawl. According to a study in 2010 by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the average traffic speed during peak hours was 12 km per hour. Experts feel that the speed has now plummeted to 8 km per hour.

While the population has grown 4.6 times, vehicle numbers have increased 158 times. N Raveendhar, senior environmental scientist, Telangana State Pollution Control Board (TSPCB), says, “Enormous delays at intersection and indiscriminate parking add to the problem.”

The vehicle density in Hyderabad is 720 vehicles per km of road compared to 290 in Chennai and 240 in Mumbai. Coupled with the issue of rising number of new vehicles being added to the roads, the demolitions of properties for the ongoing metro rail project too is causing traffic jams.

A senior official of the Land Acquisition wing of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) however fails to agree, he says, “Contrary to common belief, the demolitions do not take long and work goes on at a brisk pace. The roads are cleared of debris within no time.”

Commuters have to wait as barricades and construction material is strewn at various sites as the Hyderabad Metro Rail grapples with delays in construction. However, with the government yet to decide on the realignment issue in the Old City, people may have to endure the traffic woes.

The lack of coordination between departments is another issue that needs immediate attention say metro officials. “In spite of the weekly special taskforce meetings in which representatives of all departments take part, there are still gaps,” said a metro official on the condition of anonymity.

Commuters coming from Moula Ali and travelling towards Osmania University now have to travel all the way till State Archives department and take a ‘U’ turn. Ali, a resident of Lalapet, said, “What used to take five minute now takes 25 minutes. During office hours it is even worse.”

The worst hit are school and college students who travel by bus. According to a study conducted by among education trips, school bus and public transport, the trips account for 62 per cent. 34 per cent of people in Hyderabad use public transport.

By:T P Venu