Bhubaneswar, Aug. 22: The five-kilometre stretch between Khandagiri Naka Square and Satya Sai Enclave plunges into darkness after sunset. With no street lights, driving has become a nightmare in the evening hours and pedestrians think twice before crossing the road.
A stretch of two kilometres doesn't have a single street light, whereas those in front of AMRI Hospital are lying defunct.
"The stretch poses danger to drivers. I was once dazzled by the headlights of a motorcycle coming from the wrong side of the road. It becomes very difficult to drive after sunset," said Mahesh Tiwari, 37, a pharma executive and resident of Aiginia.
"It becomes extremely difficult to drive on the dark stretch as one can't see if anybody is trying to cross the road," said Amarendra Moharana, 35, a sales executive and resident of Baramunda.
"I dread travelling through the stretch at night and take a longer route to Baramunda instead," he added.
With motorists already facing problems due to absence of or out-of-order street lights, a faulty speed breaker and lack of policing on the stretch adds to their woes.
D.K. Dwivedy, 72, a retired bureaucrat and resident of Saheed Nagar, said: "The speed breakers are not visible from far even during daytime. Another vehicle hit my car last year. There is no proper marking on the bumps," he said. Two-wheelers often lose balance, he added.
Works department chief engineer O.P. Patel acknowledged the problem and said: "If the speed breaker on the stretch is not up to the specifications, it will be re-built."
Naresh Swain, 54, a state government employee and resident of Satya Sai Enclave, said: "It is risky for motorists who are not acquainted with the area as besides the faulty speed breaker, several vehicles drive on the wrong side of the road."
Many people visit Jayadev Vatika, a park maintained by Odisha Forest Development Corporation, and most drive on the wrong side of the road, said Tiwari. There are no cops to streamline the traffic on this stretch, he said.
"There is neither a traffic signal nor a cop posted at the Khandagiri Naka Square. As a result, motorists flout rules. This makes riding extremely risky, especially at night, since a major portion of the stretch doesn't have street lights," said R.K. Pradhan, a retired paramilitary doctor and resident of Satya Sai Enclave.
Residents feel that the civic body hasn't paid much attention to the problems faced by commuters here. Manoranjan Kanungo, 53, a doctor and resident of Satya Sai Enclave, said the civic body had done little to develop the area. "Apartments are coming up near AMRI Hospital. These will be occupied by the end of the year and will lead to an increase in the volume of traffic in the area. If the authorities do not pay attention to these issues, then a major mishap is waiting to happen," he said.
Contacted, local councillor Dillip Kumar Majhi acknowledged the problems.
"A tender has already been floated to procure and install energy efficient LED lights in the area," he said. However, he said that no proper time frame had been fixed. "The mayor has not informed us when the work would be done," he said. Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena said work on streetlights was a priority for the civic body and it would shortly be expedited.
