Rapid Transit corridor moving at snail's pace

The controversial BRT corridor between Moolchand and Delhi delayed yet again; was to be inaugurated on Tuesday

The controversial BRT corridor between Moolchand and Delhi delayed yet again; was to be inaugurated on Tuesday

If you have gone through the mess created by the first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor from Ambedkar Nagar to Moolchand, heave a sigh of relief.



The extension of the controversial corridor till Dilli Gate will not open for traffic on Tuesday, as the project is running behind schedule.

"The agency that was installing signals on the stretch is yet to complete the work," Joint Commissioner of police (Traffic) SN Srivastava said.

However, the left lane enforcement for heavy vehicles is already in place, he added.

Sources in the Transport Department told MiD DAY that the issues raised by Supreme Court judges apprehending traffic snarls are yet to be addressed.

Few judges have spoken against the corridor's extension as they fear it will make the area accident-prone and cause jams.

Also, the Transport Department is yet to provide marshals to the traffic police, who would be overseeing operations in the corridor. "We have asked the Delhi government to provide traffic marshals for strict lane enforcement in the corridor. It is yet to happen," Srivastava said.

However, he denied that Supreme Court had any problem with the BRT plan at Mathura Road.

"A meeting was held on Friday between Supreme Court judges and the implementing agencies. However, any solution is yet to emerge," said a transport official, requesting anonymity.

While Transport Commissioner RK Verma is away on a foreign tour, Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta was not available for comments.

Corridor chaos
The BRT corridor construction between Ambedkar Nagar and Dilli Gate was started in October 2006. The first 5-km stretch, between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand, was opened for public in April 2008. It ran into controversy due to the heavy traffic chaos it created.

The government did away with the middle lane system for heavy vehicles and shifted the bus lane to the extreme left.

Now the 8-km corridor between Moolchand and Dilli Gate has a left lane for buses. It was scheduled to be opened on September 1.

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