manoj

A staggered intersection on south Delhi’s Nelson Mandela Marg has become an eyesore for the traffic police as the presence of a hillock in the middle of the road is increasingly causing accidents and traffic holdups at the point. With new malls coming up on the road shortly, traffic is going to increase manifold. Traffic cops fear that the intersection is going to become a death trap if the hillock is not razed soon.

Due to the location of the hill — at the crossing with arms leading to Vasant Kunj, Vasant Vihar, JNU and Outer Ring Road — the intersection design is awkward. The four roads don’t meet at 90 degrees, making the turning blind. Further, the six-lane road narrows down considerably at the crossing, forcing people to reduce speeds. This causes traffic snarls.

Road experts say that the design is faulty. ‘‘The crossing is blind. Drivers can’t see vehicles coming from the other directions, and since the area is not well lit at night, cars can even ram into the hill,’’ said Rohit Baluja, president, Institute of Road Traffic Education (IRTE). He added that two signals at such close proximity are very confusing and should immediately be removed.

Further, motorists coming from Vasant Kunj side tend to speed and are at the risk of crashing head-on into the hill, if they are not alert.

Realising the future trouble, residents of Vasant Kunj have been approaching the traffic police, seeking an immediate solution to the mess. ‘‘Besides traffic jams, the intersection alignment is causing accidents, as there is a hill on the road. It is very bad from the safety and management point of view and must be removed immediately,’’ said Qamar Ahmed, joint commissioner of police (traffic).

A handful of jhuggis on the hill reportedly have strong political patronage, due to which it was not pulled down when the road was widened till Vasant Kunj. Residents reveal how a handful of shanties on the hillock have grown into an institution in the recent past. Inhabitants of the cluster often sleep on the sidewalk at night, and are at the risk of being run over. Further, young children can be spotted running across the main road to fetch water from the other side. When asked, PWD engineer-in-chief, R Subramanian, said: ‘‘A task force has been constituted to have the slums moved out, after which the hillock will be razed. We are looking into the matter.’’

Source: http://epaper.timesofindia.com (Delhi Edition)
Date Of Publish: 21-May-07

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streetwisw

I tend to agree with you that it needs better planning. However, sometimes removing the hill is not the only option. with a little clever designing it can work. I can suggest something if you send me a plan view or an aerial photo of the roads. Staggered junctions are not a problem. It needs sensible designing and public drving sense to work. Unfortunately, both are lacking at this point.