Darjeeling: With tourist onrush, Hill town faces traffic blues
‘During tourist season commuting turns into a harrowing experience for most...’
DARJEELING: Usually it takes around 15 minutes to reach Singamari from the Darjeeling motor stand, located at a distance of around 3.5 km.
However, at present the same journey is taking hours. With the mercury rising in the plains triggering a tourist onrush, each and every road of the Hill town is chock-a-block with traffic.
“My son goes to school located at Singamari. Owing to the traffic jams it is taking hours for him to reach town, located 3.5km away. We have to spend hours waiting at the motor stand for the school bus to arrive,” stated the mother of a class 3 student.
Education institutes including schools and colleges dot the Lebong Cart Road along with many important tourist destinations located in and around the road. Every year during tourist season, commuting turns into a harrowing experience for most of the residents.
Recently the Darjeeling police held a meeting with taxi and bus operators to work out a roadmap to ensure smooth flow of traffic.
“Very high flow of traffic owing to the tourist season on narrow roads further aggravates the situation,” remarked Arindam Adhikari, DSP, Traffic, Darjeeling. The DSP further added that another problem is the mushrooming of vehicle syndicates in the town.
“There are multiple syndicates of vehicles plying to the same destination in different areas of town. There are more than three Darjeeling-siliguri syndicates. This will have to be streamlined with one single syndicate for each destination, doing away with multiple syndicates.”
The DSP also insisted on a uniform rate chart for tourist spots. “Each vehicle charges according to their own wish for 5 points, 7 points. A uniform rate has to be worked out at the earliest in consultation with the RTO. The rate chart has to be printed and displayed in each and every taxi,” stated Adhikari.
Water tankers henceforth will be allowed in town only after 6 pm added the DSP. The police have issued strictures against pickup and drops at hotel doorsteps. “Pickups and drops will have to be facilitated from police designated pickup and drop points. If this is not followed then we will be compelled to prosecute,” added Dorjee Sherpa, OC, traffic.
The taxi syndicate proposed that Birch Hill road be opened to traffic to tourist vehicles after 1 pm. They also proposed that Sikkim vehicles should be restricted from local sightseeings and hotel drops and pickups. Vehicles should not be allowed to be parked on roadsides from 6 am to 6 pm.
‘There are multiple syndicates of vehicles plying to the same destination in different areas of town...’