Miscellaneous
More people picking BP Highway over Thankot
The number of vehicles leaving Kathmandu via the Dhulikhel-Bardibas Highway has been more than twice that of Kalanki exit point due to poor condition of the Narayangadh-Muglin road and long traffic jams between Kalanki and Nagdhunga.Anup Ojha
The number of vehicles leaving Kathmandu via the Dhulikhel-Bardibas Highway has been more than twice that of Kalanki exit point due to poor condition of the Narayangadh-Muglin road and long traffic jams between Kalanki and Nagdhunga.
According to the Metropolitan Traffic Police Division (MTPD), more than 80 percent of the public and private vehicles (having less than 35 seats) heading towards the East have been using the BP Koirala Highway.
On Saturday, 9,000 vehicles moved out of the Valley through the Dhulikhel-Bardibas Highway, while 4,200 vehicles passed through Thankot, according to Umesh Ranjitkar, MTPD spokesperson. Only the night buses bound for destinations in the East are leaving from Kalanki, he added.
Most of the passengers leaving the Valley, especially those headed for the hometowns in the East, are found to have opted the BP Highway over the Narayangadh-Muglin route due to the relatively smoother and safer ride.
The ongoing expansion of the Ring Road means many of the commuters are stuck in traffic jams for hours on end along the 7km stretch between Kalanki and Nagdhunga. “We have requested the Department of Roads to repair the road along the stretch. They have assured that the work would be completed in a few days,” said Ranjitkar.
Only 3,985 vehicles left the Valley from the Thankot checkpoint on Friday, whereas 8,567 left via BP Highway, according to the records of the Jagati Police Circle, Bhaktapur.
Shiva Khanal, engineer and information officer at the Narayangadh-Muglin Road Expansion Project, said the road section has been for 24 hours targeting Dashain halting the ongoing expansion drive in along 36-km stretch. “We have given priority to public vehicles, especially the night buses, stopping trucks and trippers from plying the road between 8pm and 12 am,” said Khanal.
Unlike in the previous years, Kalanki witnessed relatively less congestion during the biggest Hindu festival. “It could be because most of the passengers have already booked their tickets from the Naya Bus Park and those leaving for eastern parts of the country have started heading home from Koteshwor area,” said Upendra Prasad Chaurasiya, a traffic head constable deployed in Kalanki area on Saturday.