Admin, police fail to end gridlocks in Peshawar

PESHAWAR: The provincial government and the traffic police have failed to chalk out a plan to put an end to the worst traffic jams on the city roads that irk thousands of commuters daily from early morning till late evening.
Gridlocks are a routine matter on the Grand Trunk Road, Sher Shah Suri Road and Saddar Road, but traffic snarls can now even be seen on the roads at Civil Quarters, Swati Gate, Bara Gate, Bhanamari, Garhi Qamardin Chowk and many other suburban areas.
The absence of the traffic cops at many places has also added to the traffic mess in the city. On Monday evening, the traffic jam was seen right from Hashtnagri on GT Road to Mufti Mahmood Flyover and then Sunehri Masjid Road.
The same was witnessed in Civil Quarters, Khyber Bazaar and University Road. The traffic mess was also seen on checking points at various places of the city.
“They are making new experiments on daily basis which has added to the problem of the traffic jam instead of ensuring smooth flow of traffic. In the Saddar Stadium, now the drivers of passenger vehicles are told to take the Bara Road first instead of going straight which has further added to the blockade in and around Stadium Chowk,” Nisar Khan, a local resident, said.
During a whirlwind visit to various localities, many commuters said that it took them almost an hour to pass through the Civil Quarters at peak hours where road remains blocked for long. The residents of Charsadda Road also complained of the same problem despite the presence of cops in their locality.
A number of commuters said that the deployment of Traffic Wardens only on University Road and Khyber Road would not solve the traffic problem of the city that is spread from Ring Road on Kohat Road to the Charsadda Road and Hayatabad now.
“Cops must be deployed at all those points where traffic needs to be regulated. The government should also improve and widen the alternative roads in Swati Gate and Gulberg where thousands of vehicles are diverted from Bara Road due to security reasons,” said a motorist.
He added that the work on the flyover in Phase-III Chowk of Hayatabad also needs to be expedited.
A commuter, Mahtab Ahmad, pointed out that some time back the district administration had announced that rallies and protests would not be allowed on certain points.
“The Suri Pull, Khyber Road and Hashtnagri Chowk were notified as the points where rallies and processions were banned. But this decision is not being implemented. Today, I had to change several routes to reach my office on the Saddar Road as the protesters had blocked one lane of the busy Khyber Road in the evening,” complained the citizen who was highly critical of the district administration for allowing protest rallies and public meetings at busy Chowk and roads.