PANAJI
Amid accusations that the multi-crore 5.1 km-long Atal Setu is a politically driven project and a costly white elephant, the bridge’s closure for repair works - a regular occurrence - makes a significant impact on vehicular traffic patterns.
The debate about the traffic movement thus arises.
The Goan spoke to some present and former officials and activists, regarding the changed scenario.
“The Atal Setu is a boom given that the old infrastructure would not have been able to handle the current traffic movement. There’s an incredible spike in vehicle population,” Superintendent of Police (Traffic) Bossuet Silva said.
Undoubtedly, before the Atal Setu, there were limited or congested road options to travel between Panaji and Porvorim. While some commuters relied on ferry services or preferred to remain stuck in the traffic jam that usually started from Chogm Road, the overall travel time and traffic congestion were unbearable.
“The traffic pattern and volume have changed. The bridge has provided a direct and more convenient route for vehicular traffic and particularly with heavy vehicles routed on Atal Setu, the congestion on the two Mandovi bridges have eased,” the former IPS officer, who headed Goa’s Traffic Unit for a considerable period, expressed.
Rising traffic
The traffic on the Porvorim-Panaji route has seen a significant increase in the last couple of years, and with the growing popularity of the North Goa coastal belt among tourists, the three bridges are now catering to increasing vehicle strength.
As per tentative figures sourced from the government, a total of around 60,000 vehicles were added to the roads before Atal Setu whereas, in the current scenario, as many as one lakh vehicles are registered every year. The figures exclude non-Goa registered vehicles.
“Different arms of the new bridge are helping ease traffic, but it is also true that repeated problems such as constant repairs and potholes are causing inconvenience,” the officer added.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (Traffic – North Goa) Sidhant Shirodkar maintained that the vehicle population has increased over three times in recent years.
“It’s a whopping increase every year. The Atal Setu has connected both North and South Goa smoothly and regarding the traffic within the city limits, the old routes are always being used by city dwellers as well as those travelling from the outskirts,” he said.
Shirodkar further conceded that ongoing works have put a brake on the smooth flow of traffic with entire pressure on the two Mandovi Bridges. “Nevertheless, the overall movement will be put in place in the next 10 days,” he added.
Road Safety activist Roland Martins also concedes that Atal Setu, promoted as an alternative route to bypass Panaji and head towards South Goa, plays a role in this trend. However, inter-agency coordination among various departments like PWD (NH), Transport Department, Traffic Police, Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP), Smart City, and panchayats on the Porvorim side are lacking, even though repairs to the Atal Setu have not been required.
“Furthermore, the recent opening of the new High Court premises at Penha de Franca, Porvorim in August 2021, and regular activity at the Secretariat and Goa Legislative Assembly, has further increased traffic on the old bridges across the Mandovi River. The upcoming Manohar International Airport at Mopa is expected to triple the traffic in the region,” he said.
Suggestions
Recognizing the need to address the traffic concerns, Martins opined that a detailed study of traffic patterns on weekdays and weekends for both residents and tourists is crucial. Based on this study, a Daily Advisory for road users could be shared on social media to provide information about peak hour rush, sudden traffic jams due to accidents or breakdowns, specific timings for heavy vehicles, and other relevant information.
“The current response to the Atal Setu scenario is primarily from the G20 meetings time frame, but we need to plan for the future. We will raise the issue at the forthcoming meeting of the State Road Safety Council, chaired by the Transport Minister, and propose a Co-ordination Committee of all agencies to draw up a long-term solution,” he suggested.
Burdened due to works,
Traffic Cell gets more staff
With traffic police at the receiving end of traffic management in the midst of the unplanned road-related works, the authorities have sourced additional manpower from various police units to assist the existing field traffic staff. “It’s a temporary arrangement,” SP Silva said.
“Once the infrastructure is shut, which has prompted us to go back to the manual system of manning the vehicular traffic along certain stretches, it is bound to create pressure on the traffic police. As a result, we have outsourced policemen from various units in our department until the entire setup is back in place,” DySP Shirodkar added
Corruption charge
AAP leader Valmiki Naik maintained corruption in the Atal Setu project. “The chemical used between the asphalt layer and the concrete bridge was not the right material. As per sources, the contractor was forced to purchase this particular chemical under pressure from a Central minister even though it was technically the wrong choice. The same material has been used in similar projects across Goa and India, and many of these projects could meet the same fate as the Atal Setu,” he alleged.
Naik, during his past press conferences, had exposed the alleged reason for the recurrence of potholes on the new bridge. “It's corruption,” he said.
