Finding alternatives to ease traffic on Mahavidyala Mawatha

Mahavidyala Mawatha is a main road which has light and heavy vehicles, containers, particularly Pettah bound buses, passing by the hundreds every day. This road leads to five government schools and is also a hardware commercial hub apart from being densely populated. Vehicles enter this road from Abdul Jabbar Mawatha (AJM) continuously, except on holidays, creating a traffic block that continues as more vehicles flow in after the ‘green light’ signal from Armour Street junction. The traffic branch of the relevant police stations will vouch for this fact.

There are a couple of policemen only during school hours to deal with the situation and they too find it a difficult task. This has been going on for decades as restriction of the movements of vehicles, specially coming from the Aluthkade areas, are not adjusted accordingly to suit the present situation. Neither the CMC nor the past Traffic Police Chief took any action.

Vehicles starting from Hulftsdorp use Messenger Street to enter Sumanatissa Mawatha and others enter Mahavidyala Mawatha to go to Kotahena or Armour Street. It is from these points the blocks begin.

Messenger Street is narrow and is a two-way road while Old Moor Street (OMS) is wider and is oneway to enter AJM. Most vehicles that need to enter Sumanatissa Mw, or even to proceed to Kotahena, could be sent through this OMS making it a two-way road. By this arrangement, most of the vehicles need not head towards Mahavidyala Mawatha and increase the volume of vehicles. Messenger Street displays one side parking notice and OMS does not have it.

I firmly believe the present Traffic DIG should visit this place, spend some time during noon and evening hours, witness the situation for himself and consider my suggestion to ease the traffic congestion to a certain extent. Another alternative is to stop vehicles entering OMS through Sumanatissa Mawatha to enter AJM, they could use Bandaranayake Mw, - the one-way to enter AJM, and then to open OMS for vehicles to reach Sumanatissa Mw. If possible to make OMS a two-way road as it is a wider road than Messenger St. which is already a two-way. Nazly Cassim Colombo 13