A spate of speed bumps here is the root cause of jams

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, November 20

It is bizarre, unwanted and thoughtless. Stretching less than a kilometre, the road adjoining Khalsa College for Women leading from Nikka Singh Colony to the Cantonment has 15 speed breakers – a rather high number for such a small road. And several constructed without permit.

Since it is the busiest short routes taken by commuters from GT Road, according to shopkeepers of the area, these were constructed by the people having their residences on the stretch to discourage commuters taking the inner road. It connects several residential colonies and has turned into a commercial hub abundant with clothes and apparel showrooms. “With more shops coming up, the road became busier as there are two colleges nearby and many students come here for shopping. Being a narrow way, the traffic congestion is common problem as it is also a short route for people going towards cantonment from GT road. The speed breakers further slow down the traffic and cause problem,” said Sunny Singh, a shop owner here.

A heavily used course that connects main GT road with the Ramtirath road and cantonment area is marred with these ill-planned and illegal road bumps that often result in bottlenecks. While the commuters are frowning, residents complain that the irresponsible parking on the road and heavy traffic makes it dangerous for their kids “The road has several blind intersections and any vehicle coming from the internal residential area towards the road is unaware of the speed of traffic coming from the other side,” said Joginder Singh, a resident of the area. His counterparts had got the speed bumps made due to the fact that it would reduce traffic on the road. But it has only resulted in more jams.

While the Mayor Karamjit Singh Rintu has repeatedly said that the entire relaying and repairs of several main roads in city is being carried out, mending of internal road repair is on cards as well. Will the issue of removing the illegal speed bumps will be included? It is yet to be seen.