Foot overbridge a far cry for Mayur Kunj residents

Every day office-goers taking the Delhi-Noida link road pray that they reach their destinations without bumping into any traffic jam or traffic signal. And yet, the three traffic signals on the Delhi-Noida link road always “seem to be ready” to dampen all hopes. In recent years, several attempts have been made to do away with the traffic signal on the Delhi-Noida border to ease the movement of motorists, but till now the plans have yielded no results.

In 2012, the Delhi Traffic Police had closed the turn on the Delhi-Noida border to smoothen traffic movement. However, the plan caused a huge outcry by residents of Mayur Kunj. According to Chet Ram, Traffic Sub-Inspector, removing the traffic signal was a perfect solution to traffic jams during peak hours, but Mayur Kunj residents opposed the plan. Following this protest, a 30-second pedestrian red light was made functional to ensure less waiting time for motorists and give time to pedestrians to cross the road.

However, the time allotted for the pedestrians have not eased the problems of the pedestrians. Ram Singh, a 75-year-old tea seller, said: “Every day, I have to cross the road multiple times and each time, it takes me about 20 minutes to cross the road. The 30-second red light might be sufficient for the young people as they can run but for a senior citizen, it is a hard task.”

Aarti Singh, mother of two kids, however, added that it is not only the senior citizens who find the 30-second time insufficient. “Whenever I have to cross the stretch with my kids, I start panicking as the motorists never seem to stop even during the red light. However, during the Kanwariya movement, the traffic personnel force the motorists to halt until everyone crosses.”

The 30-second allotted time becomes all the more difficult during the peak hours of morning and evening. During these hours, the red light is a hindrance and nuisance for the motorists. P.J.B. Khurana, president of the Mayur Kunj Residents’ Welfare Forum (RWF), told The Sunday Guardian: “The residents support removal of the traffic signal as not only will it ease the traffic movement, but it will curb road accidents on this stretch. However, along with this, a foot overbridge (FOB) for the pedestrians and underpass for vehicles travelling from Mayur Kunj is needed.” He said: “For the past 15 years, we have held discussions with then Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dixit, her son Sandeep Dixit, Bipin Bihari Singh, East Delhi Municipal Corporation councilor, and present Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. In all these talks, we were promised that a FOB and underpass would be constructed soon, but till date, nothing has materialised.”

With the Delhi Assembly elections round the corner, the Delhi government had recently organised a grand Mayur Kunj Utsav with Manish Sisodia as the chief guest. Though the Aam Aadmi Party members seemed to be available to talk about “future plans if elected”, none were available to give a timeline to make the Delhi-Noida border an accident-free and pedestrian-friendly zone.