Pushed into a tight corner, the district administration has removed the bus bay that had been constructed at the East Fort. The action was taken in wake of the recent mishaps that had led to the deaths of several pedestrians.
It was on Friday that an 18-year old girl was killed after her two-wheeler was knocked down by a KSRTC bus at Pazhavangadi.
Nearly 20 persons had lost their lives in accidents that had taken place in the area during the previous year.
The decision was taken during a recent meeting of the traffic advisory committee during which it was resolved to operate bus services from the unused space of the KSRTC garage nearby.
Traffic Assistant Commissioner (South) S.R. Jyothish Kumar said that the bus bay had been constructed in an unscientific manner.
Pedestrians affected
“Several mishaps had taken place when pedestrians attempted to move between the bus station and the bus bay.
Secondly, there had been no proper streamlining of buses that were headed for various destinations.
In addition, there has always been a tussle among drivers of KSRTC and private buses with none willing to provide space for other buses to pass by,” he said.
The traffic advisory committee had also decided to rearrange the stops for buses that were headed for Beemapally by way of which the vehicles will have a stoppage behind the Saj Lucia Hotel, following which it will head towards the Transport Bhavan and proceed thereafter. Besides, it had been decided to evict traders from the area in a bid to enable pedestrians to utilise the footpaths.
“However, the decision had to be put on hold with the trading community organising demonstrations in front of the Fort police station recently,” Mr. Kumar said. The City traffic police are currently weighing various options intended to decongest the area.
One of the proposals is to regulate vehicles from the East Fort area towards the Karamana direction.
The authorities are also considering preventing buses from parking in front of the Sree Padmanabha Theatre.
