manoj

PAINFULLY SLOW traffic, neverending diversions and unbridled traffic chaos is the price commuters pay when very important persons take to the city’s roads.

Take for instance the just-concluded 14th SAARC summit, which saw a repeat of the usual anarchy on the roads during VVIP movement. During the two days the summit was on, several roads were closed for movement of dignitaries. That led to bottlenecks on roads not designed for heavy traffic flow and the cascading effect of the jams haunted commuters till late in the night, long after the functions ended.

Summits and conferences can’t be blamed for the traffic mess in a city home to the largest number of VVIPs in the country, and more than 50 lakh vehicles. According traffic police officials, around 8-10 per cent of their personnel are deployed for facilitating VIP movement every day. For a force of about 4,000, that translates into about 400 personnel busy making way for very important persons. “And this is only for routine VVIP movement,” says a senior traffic police officer.

Sample this: On a cool November day last year, President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam had to attend a function at India Gate, opposite the National Stadium at 5 pm. After this, the President wanted to pay a visit to the Nizamuddin dargah. As a result, all hell broke loose throughout the VIP movement route in south and central Delhi. Traffic at India Gate and Zakir Hussain Marg was completely halted at around 7 pm, when the President visited the dargah. It resulted in huge bottlenecks due to the peak hour traffic. (Related thread here)

The act was repeated a few weeks ago, when the President went to offer prayers at the Fatehpur mosque in Chandni Chowk, bringing traffic at ITO and Rajghat crossings to a standstill.

Why does it happen every time?

“The basic premise of controlling traffic during VIP movement is to stop traffic for a minimum amount of time so as to cause the least inconvenience to motorists. But this is easier said than done, as a one-minute halt results in a delay of five minutes,” says Maxwell Pereira, former joint commissioner, Delhi traffic police.

That, experts say, is one of the major causes of the problem. “Much of the chaos happens when major bus routes are diverted. Since bus routes are fixed, diverting them causes inconvenience to a large number of people,” says Dr. Geetam Tiwari of IIT-Delhi’s Transport Research and Injury Prevention Programme.

Roads that are not used to heavy traffic suddenly see a huge influx of vehicles and that results in heavy bottlenecks, she says.

The main problem often starts much after the heavyweights are gone. “A stoppage of a few min utes has a cascading effect. By the time a few thousand cars steer out of jams, the delay would have caused jams at other places. The entire rhythm of traffic flow re mains disrupted for several hours. That is the main problem,” says Rohit Baluja of Institute of Road Traffic Education.

What about pedestrians?

The ordeal suffered by people in cars is, perhaps, nothing compared to that faced by pedestrians who are not even allowed to walk on the road marked for VIP movement. Often the police barricade roads for even pedestrians, citing threat perception. “Due to security reasons, even pedestrians are not allowed to come in the way of VIP routes. It must cause inconvenience but we are bound by protocol,” says a senior police officer.

The problem irked a citizen enough to file a Public Interest Litigation in 1999, when the High Court issued showcause notices to the police and the government for unnecessarily penalising people coming in the way of VIP routes.

How can this be avoided?

In London, the authorities carry out a thorough survey of traffic circulation at points where roads would be blocked for VIP movements. “This helps in regulating traffic as based upon extensive planning the authorities inform the public well in advance,” says Baluja.

Dr Tiwari agrees: “The police needs to carry out an extensive information dissemination programme to ensure that everyone is aware of VIP routes beforehand.” Some also say that foreign delegates should not venture out into the city during peak hours. “Traffic police should not always be blamed. The officials concerned in charge of such high-profile tours should keep in mind that these visits cause a lot of trouble to people,” says Pereira.

POLICE EXCESSES In 1991, one person was allegedly roughed up by the police when he came in the Prime Minister’s route. In November 1993, a person standing at a bus stop at Rajaji Marg was shot at by the police. He was on the prime minister’s route. He survived. When the British PM moves out from 10, Downing Street in London, only one security car VOICES.

Another thread related to "Traffic jams due to VIPs"

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manoj

What people say??

There should not be any VIP movement during peak hours. It causes great inconvenience. Demonstrations and rallies must be regulated. (Sahil Arya, Student)

VIP movements should not happen at the expense of people. I am against people who block roads and cause traffic jams. (G. S. Bhatia, Engineer)

Instead of blocking common people, why not restrict movement of the VIPs on certain days.” (Mushtaq Ahmed, Businessman)


Source: http://epaper.hindustantimes.com (Delhi Edition)
Date Of Publish: 06-Apr-07

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