Editorial»
Gridlocked
JUN 20 -
Minimising traffic jams is universally appealing: for drivers, fewer frequent stops mean less wear and tear on their engines as well as increased petrol efficiency; for commuters, it equates to decreased travel time to and from work each day; and even the government sees some benefit as easing traffic jams increases the life-span of roads. Following the findings of an Asian Development Bank report, the government has plans to ease the traffic problems plaguing Kathmandu by reducing the number of small vehicles on the road, beginning with a ban on three-wheelers and micro-buses in the core of the capital. The report concluded that small vehicles are the primary culprit in increasing traffic congestion. However, though it is good to see the government taking an initiative to ease the daily hassle of getting to and from work, these initial efforts fail to address the root cause of traffic in Kathmandu: the system—unregulated parking, frequent and unpredictable stops by public transportation vehicles and poorly maintained roads.
We’ve all experienced it: cruising down the street at a comfortable speed, only to come to an abrupt stop behind a long line of cars. For those drivers on two wheels able to snake through the empty space between vehicles, the reason for the blockage becomes clear. a bus (or micro bus or tempo) has stopped, obstructing the normal flow of traffic on the already narrow city streets. No matter the size of the vehicle stopped, the problem remains the same: impulsive and erratic stopping triggers a shockwave of brake lights down the line of following vehicles. But this shouldn’t be a problem. The city has established public transportation stops, though they have fallen prey to the demands of passengers to limit the walk time to their destination as well as the eagerness of operators and conductors of public transportation to maximise their number of clients. Simply enforcing these already established traffic control regulations would do more and cost less than the government’s plan that will reportedly face complications in the management of public vehicles owned by private companies and costly proposals to expand one-way roads.
This tailoring of the public transportation system comes along with a long-term plan to limit the amount of small vehicles on the roads of Kathmandu. This effort, including an increased tax on small-vehicle imports, offers little solution to the valley’s traffic problems. Though a tax on small vehicles would ultimately limit the purchasing capacity of the already negligible group of people able to buy a car, decreasing the number of efficient, small public vehicles on the road is likely to result in massive delays for the remaining city dwellers.
Minimum stops mean minimum delay. Learning about and using the established traffic stops would have an immense impact on the flow of traffic. We can all do our part to alleviate traffic congestion in the capital because in the end, it is not the types of vehicles on the road; it is how people use them.
Posted on: 2010-06-21 08:09
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