Unplanned roads make planners’ job a Herculean task

In a bid to provide a seamless commute to motorists, a local councillor had moved a proposal to implement an alpha-numeric system to identify roads in Gurgaon. However, haphazard development in the city rendered the plan unsuitable for the urban spread.

In a bid to provide a seamless commute to motorists, a local councillor had moved a proposal to implement an alpha-numeric system to identify roads in Gurgaon. However, haphazard development in the city rendered the plan unsuitable for the urban spread.

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The proposal was moved by Nisha Singh, ward 30 councillor, in a MCG house meeting in November last year and top MCG officials had then told HT that the project would be completed within the coming months.

As per the alpha-numeric system, it was proposed that streets be identified by numbers so that no two streets have the same number. While roads going from east to west were to be given a number, those running from north to south were to have an alphabet assigned to them.

After subsequent studies and keeping in mind unplanned urbanisation, officials now say such a system is not feasible for Gurgaon as there is no scope to identify criss-cross roads serially. Doing so may end up confusing commuters.

Initially, officials had ruled out implementing the system in old Gurgaon only as it doesn't have well-defined sectors. But now, several areas of new Gurgaon have also turned out to be unsuitable for the project.

"Though the scheme was good in theory, it is not feasible here. Here, roads are not planned as a grid and, in most cases, they do not even meet at a right angle. Implementing the system would have caused confusion," said Singh.

Singh said officials of the global design and planning firm AECOM, whom she had contacted, also turned down the plan.

"We are looking for a more feasible alternative of naming our roads," she added.