Bhubaneswar, Sept. 7: Reluctance to use a flyover and a roadside parking below it have added to the pain of motorists plying on the 2.3km stretch between Kalpana Square and AG Square.

During peak hours, the problem gets compounded due to sparse usage of the Rajmahal flyover and encroachments by parked vehicles on almost half the road below it at Rajpath in front of Capital police station. The traffic congestion intensifies from 10am to 12noon and from 5pm to 8pm.

The 562-metre-long flyover that passes over Rajmahal Square has failed to address the problem of congestion. Traffic department sources said that around 15 to 20 vehicles took the flyover per minute, while during the same period 50 to 60 vehicles used the road below it. In order to guide motorists, the public works department has even placed signboards 100 metres from the flyover on the Kalpana Square side, but nothing much has changed.

Naresh Swain, a local businessman, who has to bear the brunt of traffic congestion, said the much-touted flyover failed to assuage the traffic problems in the area. "Vehicles coming from the Kalpana Square side and going towards Bapuji Nagar, a major business centre, do not use the flyover," he said.

The flyover ends at Rajpath and those travelling towards the Bapuji Nagar market and Sishu Bhavan Chhak take the road beneath the flyover. Since, almost 70 per cent of vehicles coming from Kalpana Square travel towards these two places, few motorists use the flyover. "The flyover does not serve the purpose of motorists travelling towards Bapuji Nagar, Sishu Bhavan Chhak and the airport. Three-wheelers also do not ply on the bridge as they miss out on passengers," said Bipin Behera, a sales executive.

Besides, vehicles coming from Ashok Nagar and Master Canteen Square cannot use the flyover, which adds to the traffic woes of commuters below the bridge.

The density of traffic on this particular stretch is high due to flow of vehicles from national highways 5 and 203. The vehicles use this road, which has a prominent business destination alongside it and also leads to the secretariat.

On the other hand, vehicles, mostly two-wheelers, take the road to reach the busy Unit-I market for parking. The traffic situation worsens at an intersection near the Bapuji Nagar market, where congestion has become the order of the day.

In a bid to address the issue, an underpass is being built from Sishu Bhavan Square to Master Canteen Square.

However, the problem lies in authorities' lack of foresight. It was thought that once the flyover came up, vehicular movement on the road would decrease. So, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation had earmarked the space along the road for parking. A parking attendant said they charged Rs 10 for two-wheelers and Rs 20 for four-wheelers. The traffic policeman on duty said he ensured that the vehicles were parked within the space to avoid further chaos and congestion.

"Vehicles parked in front of Capital police station cover almost half the road, leading to chaos during peak hours. While four-wheelers are mostly parked near the Unit-I market, two-wheelers are occupy space on the road," said local resident Dr R.C. Mohanty.

"Such mindless parking causes inconvenience to motorists during peak hours as it takes more than 15 minutes to traverse the 1.5km stretch between the Rajmahal Square flyover end to AG Square," said Mohanty.

Assistant commissioner of police (traffic) Jatin Panda said the traffic police had requested the civic body to utilise the wide median on the stretch for parking of two-wheelers.

"Besides, we had also asked the corporation to use the space below the flyover for parking of vehicles," he said.

Panda said the traffic policemen deployed there, too, had a tough time managing flow of vehicles, especially during peak hours.

The civic body had come up with a proposal to build parking space for vehicles at Unit-I and Unit-II market. The proposal involved building parking space for around 200 vehicles at these places to address the issue. However, the civic body's additional commissioner Alok Kumar Kar said no progress had yet been made in this regard. He said discussions were held for easing traffic chaos in the area. "The project is in the proposal stage," he said.