Citizens and traffic police would put their heads together to come up with feasible and permanent solutions to the perennial traffic woes in Patna.

For the first time, the traffic police have invited suggestions from residents for better traffic management in the city. Chandrika Prasad, superintendent of police (traffic), Patna, has issued a public notice in this regard.

“We shall interact directly with the residents and seek their suggestions to improve the traffic condition in the city. Earlier, we had interacted with different associations and representative bodies of other stakeholders. However, we thought that since the residents suffer the most, they are the only people who can suggest the best solutions. The most feasible solutions would be incorporated in our traffic management policies,” Prasad told The Telegraph.

Residents can provide their suggestions either by visiting the website of Patna traffic police, http://www.patnatrafficpolice.in, or can submit it on paper by hand or post at the office of the traffic SP at the district police headquarters in the north Gandhi Maidan area.

A meeting was held between the district magistrate, the traffic SP and Patna Municipal Corporation commissioner on Thursday. Members of autorickshaw unions also took part in the meeting.

“The plan is to make the entire city snarl-free. But to start with, we have taken up the task of decongesting the Patna Junction roundabout,” said Prasad.

He added: “Participants in the meeting said lack of parking space on Station Road is the reason for the snarls. PMC officials have been asked to identify potential parking lots in the area.”

Residents agreed that absence of parking lots was the primary cause for traffic chaos in the city.

“People park their vehicles here and there as there is no parking space in busy commercial areas like Dakbungalow Road and Station Road. Half the roads are encroached upon by vendors and squatters,” said Dr R.K. Sinha, a resident of Boring Road.

He added that creating vending zones and confining itinerant vendors and hawkers to these spaces would provide more space for movement of vehicles.

Experts suggested that another big hurdle in traffic management is the lack education of personnel.

“Most traffic constables on the roads have very little knowledge about traffic offences. Even the senior officers in the traffic department do not seem to have much knowledge about traffic management,” said wing commander (retired) Narendra Kumar, director, Alankar Auto Sales and Services Pvt. Ltd.

He added: “In the Danapur cantonment, most vehicles move at an average speed of 10kmph without flouting traffic norms as the area is under the jurisdiction of the army and rules are enforced.”