No relief in traffic congestion, commuters continue to suffer

There has been no let-up in traffic jams, particularly in the evening hours, in parts of Srinagar even as the Traffic Department has initiated various measures to decongest the city.
Residents blamed the absence of traffic policemen at the prime locations for the existing mess.
They said flyover construction had compounded the problem.
“Traffic jams have become a regular feature in Jawahar Nagar. The authorities have failed to find a permanent solution to the problem. The roads remain crowded all the time and the traffic policemen are nowhere in sight after the dark. Commuters are forced to wait for long hours to reach their destinations,” said a Rawalpora resident.
Even though the government offices have shifted to the winter capital there is no end to the congestion.
Last week, the Traffic Department had started a campaign against the people who wrongly park their vehicles on roads. The department pasted challans on such vehicles, but all these measures have failed to curb illegal parking.
“You will find wrongly parked vehicles in almost every part of Srinagar. This leads to more congestion on the city roads. The department is only taking cosmetic measures. It is not making a difference on the ground,” said a Lal Chowk resident.
The shortage of traffic policemen only adds to the problem. Against the actual requirement of 1,250 policemen to manage traffic in the city, the Srinagar Traffic Department has deployed just 270 men in various parts of the summer capital.
The government has failed to recruit more policemen in the Traffic Department.
With the secretariat shifting to Jammu for the winter months, the Traffic Department here has further reduced the number of policemen on traffic duty as it has deputed nearly 40 of its personnel to the winter capital.