Cuttack, June 5: Cops are struggling to regulate traffic here because of illegal parking on the roadside.
Vehicles parked illegally on a Cuttack roadside. Picture by Badrika Nath Das
The problem of parking has caused traffic congestion near prominent commercial establishments, particularly at Choudhry Bazaar, Naya Sarak, College Square, Ranihat and Bajrakabati Road.
Vehicles are found parked on either side of the road, leading to traffic jams.
“It is very difficult to commute on the main roads during peak hours because of the vehicles parked on either side of the street,” said Ranjit Das, a resident of Bajrakabati.
Das said the city cops had failed to take action against the violators as a result of which illegal parking was now rampant. The worst hit area is Naya Sarak.
Two years ago, the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar police had introduced “one-side” parking. The move was aimed at reducing congestion by allowing parking on one side of the road, within a white line, on an alternate day basis.
“The traffic cops should penalise those parking their vehicles beyond the designated white line marking on roads. Also, the Cuttack Municipal Corporation should come up with parking lots in more areas,” said Dinesh Sahu, a resident of Badambadi. The corporation has built 18 parking lots and proposes to set up another 21.
The steady rate at which the number of cars and two-wheelers is increasing has added to the problem of traffic congestion.
Lack of expansion of major roads coupled with encroachments has made matters worse. Regional Transport Office data indicate that the number of two-wheeler and four-wheeler registrations has seen an increase since last year.
A total of 39,905 new two-wheelers were registered in 2012-13 while the number was 39,702 in 2011-12.
“At a traffic management committee meeting we decided to launch a crackdown on illegal parking. However, as most roads do not have white-line markings, the officials of the public works department have been asked to complete it,” said assistant commissioner of police, traffic, Pramod Rath.