Mubashir Aalam Wani
Srinagar, Nov 23: The much-anticipated Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS) under the Srinagar Smart City initiative continues to remain non-operational, causing inconvenience to the commuters across the City.
While the traffic police continue their rigorous campaign against traffic norm violations and minor driving, the lack of functional traffic signals has exacerbated the challenges faced by commuters.
Notably, the non-functioning of traffic lights has caused diversions at key intersections, forcing commuters to take lengthy routes.
Several commuters said that from Shaletnag Chowk, travellers heading towards Bandipora road are compelled to take a U-turn near Mustafaabad Gurdwara, significantly increasing travel time.
“At Shaletnag Chowk, we cannot cross directly to Bandipora road, we have to take a U-turn at Mustafaabad,” said Waseem Ahmad.
He said that if commuters coming from Bandipora road side have to take Baramulla road, they have to take a U turn at Parimpora near Fairdeal shopping complex.
Similarly, on MA Road, blockades have necessitated long-distance tours, adding to take more time among daily commuters.
There are many intersections across Srinagar City where traffic lights were installed but were never made functional.
Many commuters said that due to rising traffic volume on roads in Srinagar, traffic police could be seen managing intersections manually due to non-functional lights, but that was leading to long delays and congestion.
Notably, some signals, which were initially functional, have stopped working, while the traffic at those intersections too is being managed by traffic police manually.
It is pertinent to mention that despite being a key component of the Srinagar Smart City initiative that involved substantial investment, the ITMS has yet to deliver its intended benefits.
Meanwhile, a senior traffic police officer while speaking on the issue stated that the tendering process for operationalizing the ITMS was underway, and its functionality was expected soon.
