Traffic police begin trial run, ban entry of vehicles in Chaura Bazaar

To ensure smooth flow of traffic in the city’s main ‘Chaura Bazaar’ market, the traffic police have started a trial run on Sunday. Under the initiative, no vehicular traffic would be allowed in the market on Saturdays and Sundays. Police personnel erected barricades at various entry points leading to the bazaar.

Chaura Bazaar, which always witness huge traffic jams and long queues of vehicles, especially on Sundays, today got some relief due to the trial run as only pedestrians were seen entering the market.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Jatin Bansal said shopkeepers of the bazaar had been complaining about traffic jams in the market during weekends and even residents had raised the issue in the past. Paying heed to their feedback, the traffic police have decided to stop movement of vehicular traffic in the market on Saturdays and Sundays. Shopkeepers had even alleged that due to the uncontrolled vehicular traffic in the market, footfall of customers has also declined. People hardly get space to park their vehicles outside shops.

“After starting a trial run on Sunday, we have received positive feedback from many residents. The traffic police will also welcome negative feedback, if any. The only objective of the traffic police behind the initiative was to make the market free of unwanted traffic jams being caused by entry of auto-rickshaws, four-wheelers and other vehicles. Even wrong parking and encroachments by shopkeepers and roadside vendors were also being dealt with strictly,” the ACP said.

Bansal said people who wanted to enter Chaura Bazaar should park their vehicles in the multi-level parking. People staying near Chaura Bazaar would be allowed to take their vehicles and even those who have some disability could also take their vehicles in the market.

The ACP said shopkeepers and roadside vendors were told to remove encroachments on the road in Chaura Bazaar and if they would not pay heed to the instructions, the police, in coordination with the Municipal Corporation, would take action against the encroachers as per law.

Meanwhile, huge traffic jams witnessed on the railway road, near the Jagraon bridge and Mata Rani chowk, as vehicles that were not allowed to enter Chaura Bazaar got stuck on main roads, slowing down the traffic flow.