Scores of commuters were late for office, many even getting off the bus to flag down autorickshaws or seeking lifts from other motorists in a scramble to reach their destination. Jahanvi Mishra, a Maninagar resident who works for a pharmaceutical company on S GHighway, says, "I believe that people should take public transport in order to reduce reduce load of vehicles on city roads. It also helps tackle air and noise pollution.
However, for the past three months, commuters are facing delay while travelling by BRTS buses. The problem has intensified over past two weeks." She added, "Roads are being dug up. So motorists are encroaching on BRTS lanes which is creating congestion. I have resorted to driving my vehicle when I have meetings in office or reach some place on time."
Ghodasar resident Shlok Shah works in an automobile company in Drive-In area. He said, "If anyone is late to office, he loses half a day's pay. To prevent this, I have been leaving home very early so that even if the bus is late, I do not lose my money." However, this tactic failed on Saturday. A frustrated Shah said, "If Ahmedabad Janmarg Ltd does not solve this problem fast, then people will go back to using their vehicles. The BRTS model that is heavily financed by the government will fail." AJL Executive Director M Thennarasan said, "Some reinforcement work has been undertaken to create better road infrastructure.
We will complete it in 10 days before monsoon sets in." When asked why the traffic department was not asked to manage vehicular flow considering the work had been undertaken a while ago, Thennarasan said, "We faced no such complaints. The issue came to light on Saturday so we will talk to traffic police about ensuring smooth flow of traffic so that BRTS commuters do not have to bear the brunt."
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