Hyderabad’s U-turns, meant to ease traffic, have instead caused severe congestion, increased fuel consumption, and longer commutes, with drivers often resorting to wrong-side driving to avoid delays.
Updated On – 7 August 2024, 12:00 AM
Photo: Surya Sridhar
Hyderabad: The idea of removing junctions and introducing U-turns across Hyderabad was aimed at facilitating the free flow of traffic and marked a determined effort to achieve signal-less commutes. Unfortunately, it has managed to achieve just the opposite – traffic congestion; minutes wasted navigating U-turns, and burning more fuel.
Road safety experts have long debated that this would only add to the problem, while some also blamed the bad driving etiquette of motorists. Whatever may be the reason, Hyderabadis today are forced to drive through a honking chaos of automobiles, taking the long way around.
Some examples of these exhausting consequences are the U-turns near IKEA, Sky View Building, Begumpet and Shaikpet flyovers, and others. At multiple locations around the metropolis, commuters are often left feeling frustrated due to these turns.
Time and petrol consumption
Areas in the IT Hub witness bumper-to-bumper traffic during peak hours and commuters are forced to travel extra metres just to make a turn and spending more time and fuel. Say, if you are at the Raidurg Metro Station near the TGSPDCL substation and want to go towards Dallas Center or Sky View Building, you will have to drive to the Hitec Tech City Flyover end to take a U-turn. This is almost one kilometre. Similar is the U-turn under Shaikpet Flyover.
Wrong side driving
However, not all motorists are rule-abiding to take long U-turns and prefer driving on the wrong side as an easier option. Such drivers can be found at most places where the U-turns just get stretched. This is not just limited to two-wheelers but four-wheelers and tempos as well. To minimise the distance they drive on the wrong route, some are also using the narrow bylanes through nearby colonies to cut across to the main road.
Narrow roads
In a bid to make it easier for those taking U-turns, traffic police at some spots have put up barricades to create space for them. However, this is only making the road narrow, adding to the difficulties for the oncoming traffic. At the Begumpet junction, these barricades take over one entire lane. Although there is a flyover, many motorists prefer taking this route which with the vehicles taking U-turns is turning into a congested road.
Moreover, while taking a U-turn, four-wheelers tend to take over at least one to two lanes. When most major roads have either three or four lanes, those taking U-turns occupy half of it creating bottlenecks.
I don’t feel U-turns are causing traffic jams, there are other reasons too. But improper maintenance and barricading of these turns are causing the problem. It is the worst under Road No 45 flyover said, Harsha, admin Team Road Squad on X
These U-turns cost a lot with petrol prices going up every month. When I travel to Bowenpally from Suchithra, I have to go a long way to take a U-turn and then go to Bowenpally. It just makes no sense. I’d rather wait for a signal, said Siddartha, resident of Bowenpally
I call Hyderabad the land of U-turns. I have never seen so many U-turns anywhere else. Traffic police say that they don’t have enough people to man every signal. In that case, they must restore signals, and engage traffic wardens and volunteers, said Naresh Raghavan, road safety expert
Wrong side driving
– Third highest traffic rule violation in India in 2022
– Second highest cause of road accidents in 2022
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