Overbridges are meant to address traffic woes. But, the one at Ponnurunni commissioned earlier this year, seems to have spawned fresh problems.
The narrowness of service roads flanking the overbridge coupled with the existing unscientific traffic arrangement has made things worse.
Motorists coming from Kadavanthra along the Convent Road have to take a sharp right to get on to the bridge from the service road. This has created a bottleneck at the mouth of the bridge at Ponnurunni. In the absence of a traffic warden, this irrational arrangement leads to traffic snarls in both directions.
Also, vehicles waiting to take the deviation to enter the bridge hold up traffic along the service road. When they eventually take the turn cutting across traffic down the bridge to Vytilla, traffic gets held up on the bridge. This in turn disrupts the movement of motorists coming from Vytilla.
The deviation of motorists coming down the bridge from Thammanam to take the service road to Kadavanthra make things worse, especially during peak hours.
Deployment of a traffic warden and an alternative to existing arrangement seems the only way out in the face of narrow service roads.
Patients pay more for bus fare than pills
The government takeover of the Kalamassery Medical College Hospital was supposed to be a lifeline for impoverished patients.
However, the lack of public transport connectivity to the hospital has taken things to a farcical level with poor patients having to shell out more on transportation rather than treatment itself.
“Even the limited bus services have become sporadic, thanks to the blockades, owing to road works.
Autorickshaw drivers, who even otherwise were fleecing patients, now charge in excess of Rs. 100, citing the circuitous route due to the blockade,” said Hebin Das, chairman, students’ union at the hospital.
The Cochin Medical College Employees Association is about to send a petition to the RTO and the district collector seeking Aluva-Aluva circular city services along the hospital.
“Extending Ernakulam-Kalamassery services to the hospital and deploying more KSRTC services would help solve the connectivity issue permanently,” said Mujeeb Rahman, general secretary of the association.
