Close to City Beautiful,Mohali residents want better traffic manning

Arpit Sood,Businessman

Nobody wears a helmet here. There’s little police presence and no challans are ever issued. Red-light crossings,riding without helmets and illegal parking are rampant.

Gurnam Singh,Constable

The traffic police here is a small force. Moreover,there are very few CCTV cameras installed near traffic lights. There are only a few areas – like Phase 6,7 and 8 – where strictness is maintained. However,illegal parking is a problem of the Administration. There is no parking space available in some areas. The traffic police,on its part,issues tickets for parking violations immediately.

Manpreet Singh,Student

I have never purchased a helmet. Nor have I followed other rules. This is because there’s no stringency when it comes to traffic rules. Maybe some key junctions like Phase 3B2 and Balongi observe these rules,but mostly the roads are chaotic.

Vikram,Student

Most vehicles,particularly auto-rickshaws,show a brazen disregard for rules. At places where there are no policemen,nobody stops at the red lights. Triple-riding is also common here. Roundabouts and important junctions should be manned by policemen and CCTV cameras should be installed everywhere,just like in Chandigarh.

Hardeep Singh,SGPC member and Social Activist

Mohali is the most unplanned city in the tricity. Broken roads,sharp and dangerous slip roads,unplanned structures are major problems here. A lot of accidents are caused by the stray cattle. The Administration must provide basic amenities like smooth and cattle-free roads and parking space before it can challan people for violations. Compared to Chandigarh,we stand nowhere.

Navjinder Singh Sidhu,Advocate

There’s simply too much traffic with no rules and regulations being followed. Right outside the offices of the DC and the SSP,people park their vehicles illegally all over the place. The traffic police personnel can often be seen busy talking to each other or on their phones rather than regulating the traffic. They are not loyal to their duties or accountable to anyone.

Amrit Singh,SP (Traffic)

Chandigarh,being the capital of two states,has more traffic officers and resources to tackle traffic problems. Mohali,on the other hand,has fewer officers. A lot of them are also frequently engaged in VIP duty. Moreover,some traffic lights are controlled by GMADA,while others fall under the Municipal Corporation. So,there’s no co-ordination when in comes to repairing them. The duty of the traffic police is only to control the traffic. We are public servants and we do our best to ensure that the public is not harassed in any way. For that reason,I have instructed my officers to focus on explaining the rules to the people rather than challaning them. We regularly visit schools and colleges and encourage the youth to always obey traffic rules. Many youngsters take to driving at an early age and drive rashly,which sometimes unfortunately leads to accidents. I appeal to all the residents to drive safely,wear seat belts and helmets,avoid talking on phones while driving and observe the speed limit.