Jamshedpur : A 15-member traffic task force has been constituted by the joint order of the East Singhbhum deputy commissioner Amitabh Kaushal and SSP East Singhbhum Anoop T. Mathew to find out a solution to the traffic snarls at major arteries of the city during rush hours.
East Singhbhum deputy commissioner Amitabh Kaushal said that they have decided to open an e-mail and a whatsapp number for the people by this week to give their suggestions and recommendations in solving traffic issues in city.
He said that the increasing number of the vehicles in the city, especially the two wheelers, take traffic movement to a halt. The traffic police find it too, difficult to control the traffic movement on the busy streets.
�We will declare an e-mail of the traffic task force along with the whatsapp number in which people can give their recommendation/suggestions to improve traffic� systems in the city.
They can also send pictures of traffic violations along with their recommendation. All the recommendations will be discussed threadbare at the subsequent meeting of the traffic task force (minimum once a week),� said city SP Chandan Jha after the meeting.
With expansion programmes of Tata Steel and other companies, there has been a rise in the number of heavy vehicles. The pitiable road condition is also to be blamed as it often causes breakdown of vehicles. Moreover cases of mishaps have also shoot up.�
Heavy vehicles can enter city through Mango bridge using Dimna Road and move towards Bhuiyandih, Golmuri roundabout and Burmamines and Telco between 10 am and 12 noon. While heavy vehicles can leave city between 3 pm and 5 pm on the same route through Mango bridge using Dimna Road.
The administration has also strictly restricted speed limit of commercial vehicles at 20 kph in city areas and warned of prosecution of Rs 1000 (as per MV Act) for heavy vehicles parked illegally leading to traffic congestion.
Speaking about the speed-limit method that the district police introduced, he said that the steel city has a number of accident-prone areas which have been taken care of specially.
Like the points along the Fire Temple on the Straight Mile Road, Hati-Ghora Temple on Pipeline Road, Bistupur-Jugsalai road near the Jugsalai police station, Sonari-Bistupur road near the Beldih crossing, Bhuiyandih-Agrico Road at Bhuiyandih, Golmuri-Burmamines Road near RD Tata Technical Training Centre and Ring Road in Telco are earmarked as accident prone.
�The traffic police have been enforcing the law with a firm hand. But there is no respite to the increasing number of accidents. At the same time most of the city roads are narrow.
Some are uneven and with curves. And most of the roadsides are thickly vegetated hampering the vision of road users,� said Prakash Sharma, a social worker.
He went on to add that interference of politicians in releasing those nabbed for driving without valid licenses and drunken driving and density of population also add to the rise in number of accidents.
�I think roads need widening. Proper markings should be made on all existing roads.
Authorities such as Department of Public Works should concentrate more on safety aspects,� said an official of Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce and Industry.