The subject of traffic and the many ways in which it plagues Shillong was discussed in the Assembly today, with East Shillong MLA Ampareen Lyngdoh calling for repeat offenders to be stripped of their driving licences.
Lyngdoh said this during the short duration discussion on the degradation of roads, traffic management and non-compliance of transport laws in the state on the second day of the autumn session, a subject that saw the participation of several legislators.
Lyngdoh said that the spaces for embarkment and disembarkment should be carefully chalked out by the Transport Department because the police may clamp cars and penalise drivers but those guilty of repeatedly offending should be stripped of their licence.
“I see that the Transport Department is blind on the aspect of allowing vehicles to stop by shops in busy streets and the repair shops are all over the place. Vehicles continue to crowd those roads which is also a major cause of traffic snarls,” she said, adding that transport officials should be seen on the ground like police personnel.
All the effort, on the ground at least, is seen by traffic police, the MLA said, as they are the ones who impose fines on drivers exceeding the speed limit, those guilty of parking in prohibited areas, etc.
Mawsynram MLA Himalaya Shangpliang took up the issue of the Umshyrpi to Lad Mawreng road widening project. He said that the work had begun but was suddenly halted because the Public Works Department had not handed over the land required to the contractor.
“How can a tender be called and handed over to the company when the land was not ready? The land acquisition took a lot of time and eventually what happened is that the contractor packed up and left. And the agreement signed was that if the government cannot hand over the land to the contractor within a specific time it is liable to pay the contractor in full. This is exactly what happened and the company that came to construct this road has taken our money without doing any work,” Shangpliang alleged.
However, Transport Minister Dasakhiatbha Lamare denied that there was an agreement between the government and contractor to widen the road. He said that the matter is being taken up by the Revenue Department in the delay on the other packages of the project and the National Highways Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd and the department are working tirelessly on the matter.
Speaking about the roads that lead to Shillong, Shangpliang, while declining to discuss their cargo, said that lines of overloaded trucks travel towards the city, forcing long lines of cars to queue behind them. Some of these trucks have been known to overturn because of the potholes on the highways that they run over, he added, saying, “I cannot see even one transport official checking the overloaded trucks and their documents.”
Shangpliang also questioned whether there is any timing regulation for trucks entering Shillong and whether the government has a blueprint or roadmap to ease the traffic congestion in the city.
In reply, Lamare said that the department has deployed officers at various sites to ensure and prevent overloaded trucks from using the state’s roads, especially the aging Umiam bridge.
“The department has also engaged a consultant to check on the feasibility of constructing a new 500 metre bridge dam,” he said.
Meanwhile, he informed that there are 16 vehicle pollution testing centres in Meghalaya but that the department wants to encourage all petrol pumps to have their own pollution testing facilities.
On the condition of state roads, Lamare blamed incessant rainfall for the bad condition of some roads and said that the government is actively monitoring their condition and allocates funds for their repair depending on availability.
