PUNE: After work for Pune Metro began, problem of traffic congestion on Karve Rod has increased two-fold. Earlier, there was problem at Nal Stop junction and to solve the problem, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) constructed a flyover. However, there was no respite and the situation worsened after the ongoing Metro work. MahaMetro has offered the solution of constructing two-tier flyovers to solve the problem. However, commuters have to wait for another two years for flyover work to get completed.
Karve Road starts from Khandoji Baba Chowk and ends at Warje flyover. The road is roughly eight kilometres in length and 36 metres wide.
Traffic problem starts right from Khandoji Baba Chowk near Garware School and worsens by the time one reaches Nal Stop Chowk. At this chowk, one road goes to Warje and the other to Paud Road. The flyover starts at SNDT College and ends before a police station on Paud Road. Service roads of both sides of flyovers are narrow, resulting in traffic jams.
The road connects to Erandwane and Kothrud, the fastest growing suburbs in the city. Many prominent colleges, schools and hospitals are located on Karve Road. Nal Stop Chowk has traffic flow from Deccan Gymkhana, Kothrud, Law College Road and Mhatre Bridge. Due to huge traffic jams, traffic police tried one-way traffic on Karve Road, but it failed.
Encroachment is another problem, which narrows the road, especially in Warje area. Actually, width of road has been mentioned as 45 metres in Development Plan. However, in reality it is only 36 metres. There is a need of road widening, but it is not happening as most of the housing societies are going to be affected.
Abhijeet Dombe, Executive Engineer of PMC Road Department said, “Karve Road traffic congestion issue will be solved after two-tier flyover and Metro railway projects get completed. Maximum number of people will use Metro to travel from Kothrud to main city. Nal Stop Chowk will be freed after two-tier flyover. Right now, people are facing problems due to Metro work.”
He said, “Flyover will start from Shankarrao Joshi Path, pass over Nal Stop Chowk and land just a little beyond Law College Road. The Metro will run on the upper deck while the flyover for vehicles has been planned on the lower deck. This will make it easy for vehicles to cover the distance without stopping at the chowk. It will cater to vehicles travelling towards Kothrud and Deccan Gymkhana. MahaMetro has given two years time to complete flyover work.”
