Darj: GTA to build road at a cost of Rs 11 crore to ease traffic snarls
‘Darjeeling roads can handle upto 6,000 vehicles a day. However, this number shoots up to around 20,000 in a day during peak season’
DARJEELING: Traffic snarls have emerged as a major cause of concern for the Hill town with the ongoing onrush of tourists. The Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) along with the Darjeeling Police have come up with a number of remedial measures to ease the problem. The GTA has announced a new road from Lebong to 3rd Mile on the Kalimpong Road to ease traffic on National Highway 55 at a cost of Rs 11 crore. The Darjeeling police have come up with a helpline.
Anit Thapa, chief executive member, GTA on Monday announced a 13.5-km-long road from Lebong Stadium to 3rd Mile on the Kalimpong Road via Pandam. “This road will ease the traffic problem to a great extent,” stated Thapa.
“The traffic jams, specially in between Jorebungalow and Darjeeling is causing a lot of problems to local residents, students, emergency services and tourists alike. At times it is taking hours to navigate this 8-km-long stretch. The new GTA Road will ease this to a great extent,” stated Norden Sherpa, GTA Sabhasad in charge of tourism. About 3 km of the road from 3rd Mile to Rangeroong already exists. A bridge spanning 35m has to be built that will connect the stretch from Lebong Stadium via Pandam to the road from 3rd Mile to Rangeyroong. “Traffic to Kalimpong, Sikkim and other places through the Kalimpong Road can be diverted through this new circular road, thereby easing traffic on the National Highway 55,” added Sherpa.
The Darjeeling Police has also taken a number of steps to address the problem. “We have come up with a helpline through which the public can send us WhatsApp messages regarding illegal parking, obstruction of road or other related matters. They have to send us a photograph. The matter will be verified and immediate action will be taken,” stated Praween Prakash, Superintendent of Police, Darjeeling. The helpline number is 9147889073.
He also stated that taxis should stick to designated pickup and drop points, including Darjeeling Railway Station; Post Office; Clubside and Bhanu Bhawan. Vehicles should also be parked in designated parking lots. “The police is trying its best, all should cooperate,” added the SP.
Darjeeling roads can handle upto 6,000 vehicles a day. However, this number shoots up to around 20,000 in a day during peak season. “Normally it takes 20 minutes to reach my school in Jorebunglow from Darjeeling town. However, during peak tourist season it is unpredictable. Jorebunglow is a bottleneck. Traffic from Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Tiger Hill, Mirik, Siliguri all come and get stuck there,” stated Deven Chettri, a school teacher.
Even tourists cannot escape this stretch. “It took nearly the same time to traverse this 8km as our flight from Mumbai to Kolkata. Something needs to be done about this,” stated Sunetra Rudra, a tourist from Greater Mumbai.
GTA announced a new road from Lebong to 3rd Mile on Kalimpong Road