The city’s roads can be a great leveller. Nowadays, whether it is a middle-class employee on a bike or a corporate honcho in a luxury sedan, almost everyone has to go through a torturous time navigating his or her way through pot-holed and damaged roads across the city. Not that the situation was any different all these days, but the condition of the roads just went from bad to worse due to the recent spell of heavy rains.
There cannot be a better example than the Erragadda-Kukatpally stretch where the journey is not only back-breaking but painstakingly time-taking. This busy corridor, which is a national highway, deserves special mention because there are very few spots in this 7 km stretch where the road is motorable. At Moosapet, the road is in a dire need of repairs as a number of minor accidents have taken place in the last few days. “We are having a tough time manning traffic due to the existing condition of the roads,” said K. Ramulu, Balanagar Traffic Inspector.
“The visibility is poor due to the increased dust from the damaged roads. Accidents have also taken place but thankfully none of them were serious. Since the public will ultimately blame us if any untoward incident happens, we are making sure that additional constables are deployed to warn the public to be careful at certain points.”
For two-wheeler riders, the city’s roads are indeed a challenge till they reach their destination. “I should drive steadily on the loose gravel, focus on dodging potholes and also cover my face well to ensure I do not get respiratory problems because of the dust. These are some of the suggestions I keep giving myself from the time I start from my place in Alwal till I reach my office in Banjara Hills,” said a 22-year-old private employee K. Amrutha. “The road conditions are pathetic throughout the route I take, whether it is Trimulgherry, Begumpet, Punjagutta or even Banjara Hills. I am postponing work which requires travelling only because of the bad shape of the roads,” she said.
For a city which is being projected as a global IT destination, the roads in Cyberabad definitely do not match up to the expected standards. Three major stretches which is taken by lakhs of IT employees everyday has been badly affected by the recent rains.
The stretch from Kukatpally Rail Over Bridge (RoB) to Cyber Towers has innumerable potholes even on the flyover. Heavy traffic congestions take place on Kavuri Hills-Kothaguda and Kothaguda-Gachibowli stretches due to the weather-beaten and bad-quality roads.
