Agartala: Nov 06: The traffic situation in Agartala, despite multiple efforts by the local authorities, continues to worsen, raising concerns about the effectiveness of the city’s traffic management. Over the past few months, the police and traffic administration have conducted several operations, but these have failed to provide any lasting solution to the city’s chronic traffic jams. One of the main reasons behind the congestion is the careless parking of two-wheelers along the roads by local businesses, which exacerbates the problem.
On Wednesday morning, a fresh crackdown was carried out in the Botal area of Agartala, led by Traffic SP Manik Das and the Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), along with other police and traffic personnel. During the operation, the Traffic SP noted that vehicle movement in the area was significantly slower than usual, contributing to the growing congestion. He observed that some local business owners were parking motorcycles and scooters along the roads, which further increased traffic congestion.
The authorities have instructed these business owners to park their vehicles in designated parking zones to ease traffic flow. Additionally, some street vendors were observed conducting business along the roadside, which poses a safety hazard and contributes to the traffic snarls. The Traffic SP emphasized that this illegal street vending could potentially lead to accidents and further exacerbate the congestion. Discussions will be held with the relevant departments to ensure that vendors are not allowed to occupy the roads.
The big question now is whether these measures will have a tangible impact on the situation. Traffic jams in Agartala are becoming so severe that even emergency vehicles get stuck in the gridlock. The multiple traffic signals in the city, located at short intervals, only seem to worsen the situation, as vehicles are forced to stop frequently. As a result, many believe that the current traffic signal system may be one of the key contributors to the city’s growing congestion problem.