Hyderabad: The traffic bottleneck at Lakdikapul continues to be a nightmare for motorists even after the construction of a flyover and several traffic management experiments. Now with the Hyderabad Metro Rail taking up a big chunk of space, lakhs of vehicles are forced to crawl inch by inch during peak hours. The trouble is likely to increase as the Metro Rail reaches the junction. Neither the traffic police nor GHMC has found any solution to the issue.
The vehicles from two major roads - Nampally and Secunderabad - going towards Mehdipatnam, Banjara Hills, Ameerpet and Begumpet reach Lakdikapul, and take a diversion. Thousands of heavy vehicles including APSRTC buses use the area everyday. “Now, as the Metro Rail has taken up space on the approach roads towards Lakdikapul, vehicles have slowed down kilometers from the junction. As we near the junction, it becomes the biggest traffic jam in city," said K. Narasimhulu, a resident of Mehdipatnam and a regular motorist through Lakdikapul.
While the GHMC authorities have hinted that road widening is almost impossible in the area, Hyderabad traffic police claims to have taken a few steps to reduce traffic on approaching roads. Senior police officials said that APSRTC have agreed to divert buses in order to reduce traffic. “Nearly 200 APSRTC buses, mainly interstate and inter district services, have been diverted through other routes. Passengers of these buses do not need to travel this way since they are going to other places. We are planning to divert more vehicles shortly by checking their destinations,” said traffic police additional commissioner Jitender.
However, commuters feel that temporary traffic diversion won't be a solution when Metro Rail construction starts at Lakdikapul. According to Metro Rail officials there would be a overhead Metro station at Lakdikapul and another one near the Secretariat. The Metro will need a lot of space on the roads when construction begins.
