E-Paper
In a jam of their own making
TRAFFIC JAMS at Rawatpur Railway Crossing have become a routine feature and are proving to be a bane for commuters. A large section of the area adjoining Rawatpur gets affected by the traffic jams which, at times, continues for hours at a stretch.
But what are Rly authorities doing?
TRAFFIC JAMS at Rawatpur Railway Crossing have become a routine feature and are proving to be a bane for commuters. A large section of the area adjoining Rawatpur gets affected by the traffic jams which, at times, continues for hours at a stretch.
The Rawatpur Railway Crossing, in the heart of the city, connects several areas of the city and is a prominent location, from where commuters can move towards Sarvodaya Nagar, Pandu Nagar, Neer Sheer crossing, Kakadeo and other areas of the city. The problem of commuters can be gauged from the fact that the crossing is closed eight times in a day to facilitate the movement of trains.
The same chaotic scene was once witnessed at the Ratwatpur crossing when it closed for Kalindi Express at around noon. Hundreds of commuters got stranded in the traffic jam on both sides of the crossing. Stuck in the jam were school kids in open rickshaws, and remained so for about one-and-half-hours. The ordeal was further compounded by the scorching sun and humid climate. Even after the opening of railway crossing the traffic jam continued for about one hour.
The gateman of the Rawatpur Railway Crossing also held the commuters responsible to a large extent for traffic jams even after the opening of the crossing. “Knowing fully well that people from the opposite side, have to move towards the left of the road, yet people will break the queue and block the path of those coming from the opposite side,” stated the gateman.
In the mad scramble to reach the destination even educated people do such acts, which can be expected only from illiterates, added a railway official. The lone traffic police personnel deputed at the Rawatpur crossing remains unmindful of the jam.
A local vendor Ram Pal stated that the traffic police personnel take no interest in streamlining the movement of traffic and it was only due to efforts of local people that the jam could be removed.
