That’s Not Smart! Having A Mega Circle Taking More Road Space

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That’s Not Smart! Having A Mega Circle Taking More Road Space

Mangaluru: On the outset I would like to advise the engineer/engineers or the planning committee team behind the construction of the mega circle near Mallikkata/Kadri to attend the 2-day workshop ‘Karnataka Smart City Project-Action Plan for Pan City solutions” now going on at Hotel Ocean Pearl, so that they learn more about how to construct a road/footpath/circles etc, so that they won’t create yet another blunder in constructing huge circle which take lots of road space-like this one near Mallikatta. Ask any auto-rickshaw drivers, shop owners, motorists, citizens- they will all say its dumb to have such a large circle, which is definitely not needed.

Take a shoddily engineered road and add to it a dollop of reckless motorists and a drizzle of pedestrians with no sense of self-preservation – and you have a recipe for disaster. With few thousands of new registrations of vehicles every day, traffic is going to be a titanic problem in this Coastal City- and added to that what really makes a congestion more worse is due to the large unscientific circles/rotaries at various junctions. Due to poor planning while the new roads are constructed, there are cases where you can find mega circles at unwanted places, and on the other hand there are no circles at all, where they are really needed. Not a “Smart” move for a “Smart City” like Mangaluru?

If one dissects and analyzes the humongous traffic woes of the city, what stares back is the extremely poor engineering and design of roads – a ready-made recipe for frequent traffic gridlocks, made worse by reckless driving and little regard for rules. The other big culprit behind frequent traffic bottleneck is the tendency of Mangaluru’s roads to suddenly narrow in. Road engineering actually branches out of civil engineering and involves planning, design, construction, and maintenance of all things that ensure smooth flow of traffic and safety of motorists as well as pedestrians.

This large circle at the Mallikatte junction, surely create lots of obstructions for vehicular movement from three directions. This is an example of yet another absence of proper road engineering. While the city’s vehicle population is increasing at this maddening pace, and when there is no scope for road growth with the city’s road density restricted to certain size, and now with these large circles, the traffic situation will still get worse. In this scenario, the perennial problems posed by poor road engineering (which end up with roads being designed with bottlenecks) and lack of motoring skills make a deadly combination for a city that seems to be facing “certain death”. This is the main cause of traffic congestion, causing a chain reaction of gridlocks affecting adjoining areas too – a gridlock made worse by motorists blatantly flouting traffic rules.

And the bad part of this Mallikatta Circle is that most of the traffic, especially the private buses coming from Bendore side-towards Mallikatta and proceeding towards Kadri market don’t even come around the circle, instead make an easy and quick turn in order to avoid the circle. That’s a safety hazard, because motorists coming from Kadri side and going towards Malikatta may end up in an accident when these bus drivers skip making a turn around the circle. First of all our Kudla roads are narrow, and with these mega circles, they are making it worse, resulting in traffic congestion and accidents.

Even before this Mallikatta Circle is completely finished, already there has been lots of confusion faced by motorists trying to make a turn around this complicated mega Circle. Absolutely not a “Smart” plan when the City is gearing up to be a “Smart City?”.

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Edwin Pinto
7 years ago

Great article Alfi- As you have said we need Smart people to make Mangaluru a Smart City. If not, it will be all money pocketed by the authorities-the smart way to make smart money in the name of Smart city?

Pradeep Raj
7 years ago

Yes infact this is a sensitive issue/thought where everyone has to speak up. It has covered the large space of the road, and it’s literally leading to the place towards accident prone area. It’s the connecting road towards/from the Kadri temple where we can’t cross/move freely. Before planning this construction, two large vehicles such as busses /trucks/lorries were passing on the same lane… Where as now even one car along with a bike can’t move…!!! It’s better to reduce the space of the circle,..!!!!

Sashidhar Kotian
7 years ago

You rock Bro- all your articles make sense to educate some of our officials who have got the position through votes and not through their education and knowledge. How can Mangaluru be a smart city with NOT so smart people in MCC who are looking to make this city smart, or trying to make some smart money in the name of Smart city- just a portion of the crores of Rupees sanctioned by the govt will help these greedy and corrupt ????-I won’t name them, you do it?

7 years ago

It is designed to allow easier traffic merging. Having said that, we know Mangaloreans do not respect road rules and try overtaking at places not meant for that, block merging traffic, bully smaller vehicles and pefestrians. Road rules are broken too often.

Truth Seeker
7 years ago

Thanks for pointing out that these pics are from mangaluru. The chaotic traffic, unfinished project, piles of construction material and dusty streets make it look like some unknown city from somalia.

Praveen
7 years ago
Reply to  Truth Seeker

Somalia… – Namma Rampe

Hello RampaNNA, for your imaginary God’s sake – JUST shut up man. As it is, you come down once in ten years coz you can’t afford a ticket. So, learn, put-up AND ..!

Sheikh
7 years ago

Mangalore city is under the BJP ruling since 1991. Party is only blaming 70 years of the past ruling of Congress is if India is never existed before. This city must have surpassed development to most planned city ‘Chandigarh’ of India during BJP ruling in its 25 years ruling.Aache din would have visible everywhere with most happy citizen index figure everywhere. Highest educated voters can’t even choose wise candidates. Other than ‘pub attacks’, ‘morning mist attacks’, moral police’, ‘Gou rakshaks’,’ hate speeches’ city has nothing to show to the world. Once stood topper in education is now pushed to third… Read more »

Truth Seeker
7 years ago

“Just Shut up…” says Joker Pinto

Why is he so mad when I point out the truth? Is it because his entire world view is based on small, rented room at Yemmekere? May be, he is right. If I don’t tell truth, there is a good chance that he and many other equally illiterate minds will live happily in an imaginary ‘smart city’!! As they say, it’s all in your mind. smiles…