The growing congestion in Imphal is a cause for worry. A flyover or two will hardly make a difference either. In fact, as many have already pointed out in the debate over the suitability of the BT Road Flyover when it was first being commissioned, unless any particular flyover is able to lift traffic out of a congested area and land them at a distant non-congested area, it will only become a matter of shifting one point of congestion to another. The BT Road Flyover, barely a few hundred meters long, is hardly the former. The benefit it has serve initially was at best in terms of separating pedestrians and shoppers from vehicular traffic to some extent `“ the ground for the latter and the flyover for motor vehicles `“ but even this is now no longer the case. The ground too is now in a perpetual traffic jam. From this point of view, the effort to widen the city roads has been more commendable, and if at all there are prices being paid by individual property owners along these roads, they must understand, it is for a greater common good, although this does not mean that they must not be awarded suitable compensations. The pattern has however been for property owners alone to get compensation, and not those who run small time businesses from rented spaces. Most of these businesses, such as PCOs, photocopy shops, tea stall etc follow a territorial logic, and even if they were to set up the same businesses in other locations, chances are they will never find a foothold. The government, if fairness is the game, should think about them too.
However, despite all these efforts, the maddening congestion that Imphal today is being suffocated by is unlikely to be eased to the extent desired. This is because the planners continue to ignore certain vital needs of a growing city. To name just two simple and the obvious ones: traffic disciplining and a total restructuring of the parking norms. We find it absolutely difficult to understand why heavy commercial and passenger vehicles are being allowed to park, not just enter the heart of Imphal during busy daylight hours. Only insane city planners would continue to give the nod to the Keishampat bus parking, or the one at Waheng Leikai junction. The bus depots must be pushed out, if not to the outermost fringes of the city, then at least away from the city core. It would hence do well for the government to think of building a few more bus terminus away from the innermost layer of the city. There are a few well-placed ones already, such as the one at North AOC and the Andro Parking adjacent to the AIR complex. In direct contrast, there are no proper parking spaces for small private vehicles anywhere near the Imphal city heart. Under the circumstance, people park their vehicles anywhere on the road. Visit the Paona and Thangal Bazar area to get a sense of this. Hence, even as the commercial vehicles are being pushed out, some officially designated parking areas must be built in and around the main Imphal shopping centers. Within the shopping areas, all engine vehicle should be forbidden. A bit of walking in these areas will do the shops as well as the shoppers plenty of good. New constructions, especially hotels and malls, which we are sure will spring up rapidly sooner than latter, must be compelled by law to have at least the ground floor or an underground one, as parking space.
In the longer term planning of course, the government must nudge Imphal to branch out. Satellite settlements and townships must be encouraged. The best suited places for such colonization will be the agriculture unworthy sections of the foothills nearby. It should not be difficult to imagine how the Langgol Housing Complex and the Games Village would have eased the population pressure on Imphal proper. The Nongmaijing and Ngariyan etc, can also be made to pitch in. If new legislations are necessary for this, they must be brought about. Imphal is on the point of imploding and the government must open its eyes to this reality too.
Leader Writer: Pradip Phanjoubam
Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/02/imphal-must-fan-out/