Jan. 19: The recently inaugurated Rupnath Brahma Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT) appears stuck in second gear, at least for another two years.

Over a month into becoming operational, the terminus is handling only a fraction of the intended traffic load.

Opened amid a lot of fanfare by chief minister Tarun Gogoi on December 8 last year, the complex has run into logistic hurdles, which will take at least another couple of years to sort out.

“The ISBT located near Lokhra on the city outskirts is ready, but poor communication from the city to the area is posing a big problem. We cannot force bus operators to shift to the ISBT because it may cause inconvenience to the passengers,” managing director of Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) K.N. Chetia said.

The new terminus was supposed to accommodate all long-distance buses headed to destinations outside the state, while the intra-state buses were to be shifted in a phased manner. But even now, almost all the long-distance buses, including the inter-state ones, are still operating from Paltan Bazar.

Chetia admitted that only a few vehicles were plying from the terminus owing to logistical hurdles. “After the inauguration, 64 inter-state buses, including some ASTC-run vehicles, were shifted to the new terminus. But majority of them started moving back to Paltan Bazar because a National Highways Authority of India flyover coming up in front of the ISBT, has made it difficult for the buses to enter and leave the terminus,” he explained.

The two-lane flyover is likely to take more than a year to be completed and until then, the chances of the ISBT becoming fully operational seem remote.

The NHAI is constructing the flyover for smooth movement of vehicles to and from the terminus without disturbing traffic on the Guwahati bypass of the National Highway, along which the complex is located.

The terminus was intended to ease congestion at Paltan Bazar, but for commuters, respite seems a distant proposition. Chetia said plans were on to ferry passengers from Paltan Bazar to Lokhra in mini-buses to enable them to board the vehicles at the ISBT without difficulty.

“But for this to happen, the road link from Paltan Bazar to the terminus must be improved. The PWD has already taken up a Rs 30-crore project to develop Lokhra Road, which is the direct route connecting Paltan Bazar with Lokhra ” the ASTC official said.

Clarifying that haste would only inconvenience the public, Chetia added, “If we force the operators to shift to the ISBT immediately, it will negate the very purpose of constructing the terminus. But I can assure that within a period of two to three years, all buses will operate from the ISBT”.

Private bus operators have already raised their voice for the refurbishing of road links and other facilities before the terminus becomes fully operational. “Before taking any decision in this regard, certain issues like how people will come to the city from Lokhra, or where we will put up our ticket counters, need to be sorted out,” a long-distance bus operator said.

Owing to its proximity with Guwahati railway station, Paltan Bazar has, over the years, grown into the originating point for long-distance buses from within and outside the state. The ASTC operates around 300 long-distance buses a day, while private operators ply another 400.

Facing a daily rush of traffic, residents of this transit and business hub have been demanding that the terminus be shifted from the heart of the city to give a fresh lease of life to the overcrowded area.

“During evening hours the whole area remains choc-a-block with buses, leading to long traffic snarls. We feel the ISBT should be made operational as soon as possible to decongest Paltan Bazar,” said Ashim Dhar, a resident of AK Azad Road.