Irksome Traffic Jams On Boulevard Road, An Agonising Experience for Both Locals & Tourists

The entire area right from Dalgate to Faqir Gogri Dara remains a tourist attraction for several reasons. Firstly, it is located at the foothills of a beautiful mountain range-Zaberwan, secondly, this area is surrounded by many famous and historical places that include, Recently developed Golf Course, Tulip Garden, Botanical Garden, SKICC, the Historical structure like Pari-Mahal Mughal Gardens, etc. People residing in this particular area feel proud to be part of this area. All these aforementioned periodical developments not only add beauty to the entire area but also develop economic status.

But for the last few years, all these facilities and establishments have become a curse for the local population because of frequent traffic jamming at various places on Boulevard Road. The most affected areas are  Chashme Shahi, Brein, Laam, Nishat, Shalimar, Harwan, Darbagh, Muftibagh, Dara, and many other adjacent Hamlets. This continuous and unending problem that usually starts at the onset of the spring season-March with the opening of Tulip Garden followed by the opening of other Mughal Gardens became an agonizing experience. People whether availing private or public transport stuck hours on the mid-road to reach their destinations. Recently one of my friends Javid  Sahab  shared some of his bitter experiences of his life regarding his daily travel on this very route from his native village Mufti-Bagh to Srinagar to attend to his duties. He said, “It became the most acrimonious experience for those who are opting this road daily, it is time-consuming, boredom, headache and unpleasant journey for us. It not only affects our social/ family lives but also puts a negative impact on our professional life. It has a very adverse effect on health. We are unable to perform our formal and informal responsibilities in time; whenever there is any VVIP moment, they give the timely diversion of traffic via Hazratbal compounded the problem because this timely diversion is putting extra burden on the route which always remains jam-packed. The sufferers of this action are mostly school and university goers. This diminishes their chances of performing their duties very well. One more important public concern is related to human lives which is medical emergencies. Any unnecessary delay due to the frequent traffic halt will have very serious consequences on human life. It can be fatal for women patients (Delivery cases).  Recently a piece of news was circulated through print and electronic media that In ‘smart city’ Srinagar, a heart attack patient dies on the way to the hospital allegedly due to a traffic jam The patient’s family and attendants said that the patient was not able to reach the hospital in time due to traffic jam and it took them 40 minutes to reach to hospital.” While interacting with me he was very dismayed over this situation. He shared some suggestions to overcome this problem which I want to pen down here. Hope that the concerned authorities who are dealing with the SMART-CITY Project will give due ear to these suggestions so that this Godly gifted area becomes pleasant and favorable for both locals and our visitors.  The concerned authorities have to work on two fronts. One is to find immediate solutions and long-term solutions.

Immediate Solutions: One of the immediate solutions is to widening of the entire road from Dalgate to Shalimar. It can be done in a phased manner. First, widening should be done on particular spots at Dalgate, Kralsangri near Syed Sahib Shrine, at the Mughal Gardens –Nishat, Shalimar. All this process should be done after doing the proper social survey. Also, in this entire process, proper rehabilitation policy must be adopted so that no one will suffer in terms of shelter or trade. Installation of  Permanent road dividers where necessary.  Government can introduce an ample number of special city bus services and encourage people to use that very transport facility.
Long-Term Solutions: For a sustainable solution to this problem, it would be better if the government will develop an alternative route plan under the Smart City Initiative for the local population.
Besides this, we common people can do timely methods to eradicate this traffic mess. Like we can share private vehicles with our nears and dears, we can encourage our generations to use cycling culture, among youth, following Traffic Rules consciously.  These small initiatives not only reduce the traffic rush but will keep our environment neat and clean. Let us join hands to make this entire area more nice-looking and favorable.
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