Pune: With the BRTS route on the Nigdi-Dapodi stretch taking away over half the width of the service road and temporarily being blocked for traffic movement, traffic congestion on the stretch between Pimpri (Babasaheb Ambedkar Chowk) and Akurdi (Khandoba Mandir chowk) has become a daily problem during peak hours.
Citizens complain that the BRTS work on the Nigdi-Dapodi stretch is going at snails speed and as it is closed for vehicles, all the traffic is being squeezed through the narrowed service road. During the peak hours especially the Chinchwad and Akurdi junctions on the stretch have become traffic bottlenecks.
DCP, traffic police department (Pune), Vishwas Pandhare said that the traffic police cannot do anything to resolve the traffic issues arising on the Nigdi-Dapodi Road due to BRTS project and added that the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) should find a solution.
A resident of PCMC area, Ashish Shinde, who uses the road often said that there was no need for a separate BRTS lane on the eight lane arterial road. “There was no traffic problem on the whole stretch earlier, but with a separate BRTS lane it is leading to traffic snarls. On the whole the project is delayed and has been going on for over a year now,” he said. Another resident, Pooja Patil complained that the BRTS route on the wide highway is adding to confusion among road users. She said, “It will be a big puzzle on how to switch between service and fast lane with the BRTS lane cutting through.” Speaking on the issue, PCMC municipal commissioner, Rajeev Jadhav said that they are aware of the traffic problem on the stretch. “We have already decided to add one more lane to the service road on both sides of the highway by shortening the existing footpath by half the present width. The work has already started,” he said. He added that they are planning to temporarily open the BRTS lane for traffic in the next five days.
