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Swargate chowk, a nightmare for commuters and pedestrians
Commuters and pedestrians at the Jedhe Chowk, popularly called “Swargate” have been facing difficulties from the last few days with illegally parked auto-rickshaws,
Commuters and pedestrians at the Jedhe Chowk, popularly called “Swargate” have been facing difficulties from the last few days with illegally parked auto-rickshaws, ST buses and passengers plying in and out, bottleneck traffic movement, no zebra crossing markings and overspeeding vehicles.
Due to the ongoing Pune Metro work the infrastructure, vehicular movement and overall operations of the MSRTC and PMPML buses from this chowk have gone for a toss. More congestion is expected at the spot if the Swargate - Katraj BRTS resumes service
The HT team visited Swargate on Friday and found glaring issues for commuters and pedestrians.
On one side of the chowk is the Swargate ST stand, while on the opposite side is the PMPML main bus stop. Due to the ongoing Pune Metro work, barricading has been done from the side of the ST stand cutting down the road width into half.
In addition to the reduced width, illegally parked auto-rickshaws at the entrance gate of ST stand have further significantly reduced the size of the road
Passengers stepping out of the ST stand from the Satara road entrance have to risk their lives to cross the road, as there are no proper zebra crossing markings.
Also, auto-rickshaws, ridesharing and private vehicles that drop or pick-up passengers from the ST stand add to the traffic congestion.
A similar scene was witnessed on the opposite side of the road where the PMPML bus stop is located. Half of the road is barricaded to make a dedicated lane for buses when the PMPML buses arrive from Satara road towards the chowk, there is a long queue of buses creating a hurdle for other vehicles. In all this mismanagement, pedestrians have to risk their lives while walking through the road.
“I daily travel through this road to go to my office, since the Metro work barricading has been placed, the traffic at the chowk has increased during peak hours. The ST buses randomly drive from anywhere in the chowk and create more problem to the vehicular movement. Also, the illegal hawkers and auto-rickshaws standing all over the chowk should be removed permanently,” said Bipin Gandhi, a citizen.
According to advocate Kishore Rahile of Pune Safer Roads organisation, before beginning the Metro work at Swargate, it was necessary to partially shift the PMPML and ST bus operations to another side of the chowk.
“Auto rickshaws are parked all over the chowk in a quest for passengers. There is a need to review and revamp the entire chowk’s infrastructure on a temporary basis until the Metro work is complete. The entry and exit of ST buses from the ST stand is one of the crucial issues which needs to be resolved, for which all parties need to take a joint meeting and find a solution. Also, pedestrians need to be taken into consideration as there is a heavy vehicular movement around the chowk and daily thousands of people pass through here,” Rahile said.
