Driving on Jhabal road a nightmare for commuters

Commuters on the Amritsar-Jhabal road are a harried lot. They say despite paying a heavy toll fee for using the road, road infrastructure is not in good condition. They say they feel cheated. The toll plaza was set up around two years ago, even as the project was not complete.

In the last two years, the condition of the road, riddled with potholes, has worsened. “There is hardly a 500-m stretch which does not have potholes forcing drivers to slow down their vehicles,” said Alambir Singh, a frequent traveller on the stretch. Commuters are charged Rs 40 for a one-way drive.

The road, which connects the city to places like Bhikhiwind and Khemkaran, is used by thousands of vehicles daily. Commuters complain that it is one of the busiest road stretches in the district after the Amritsar-Jalandhar highway, but its condition is worse than a link road.

With the foggy season a few weeks away and the road having no warning signs, commuters are surely at a risk. “A major portion of the road does not even have white markings on its sides which guide drivers on a foggy day,” said Gurnam Singh, another commuter. He said people do not mind paying toll fee but it is the duty of the government to ensure that they are getting the best service for their money.

“This is a ticking time bomb,” said Gurpreet Singh, a local resident, adding that the authorities must take notice of the problems faced by commuters before someone loses his life or limb. Commuters have reported multiple close shaves and minor accidents due to the broken road.