Srinagar Jammu National Highway abandons up & down traffic system

No “restrictions” on the movement of fruit-laden trucks & other vehicles: Div Com Kashmir

Amidst the claims that there is an “improvement” in Srinagar Jammu national highway road conditions, the Jammu and Kashmir administration has decided to do away with the odd-even traffic management system, disbanding the “up and down” convey plan on the highway stretch.

No traffic restrictions on NHW

Divisional Commissioner Kashmir V K Bidhuri told media on Monday that there will be no “restrictions” on the movement of vehicles on the NHW, saying that there has been a considerable improvement of the road on the Srinagar Jammu National Highway, saying that they have decided to do away with up and down convey traffic management system on the highway.

“There will be no restrictions from now on as there is an improvement on the road and not just the fruit growers or their fruit-laden trucks, it will be beneficial for all. Even bigger trucks can move seamlessly now on a daily basis”, he said.

The Divisional Commissioner Kashmir stated, according to the Ground Report, that they designed the SoP after the 2019 attack on the CRPF convoy at Lethpora in Pulwama. The SoP aimed to stop the traffic on the other side during the movement of the convoy. When it was framed, they were working on the national highway.

He added that the administration has given a thought to it and there is a good improvement in the situation. He also mentioned that the security agencies are reviewing the situation and they will soon come up with something, considering both the security angles and the convenience of the people.

The Chief Secretary of J&K made this decision after personally visiting and reviewing the road conditions on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway.

Efforts to reduce travel time

Notably, in an official handout issued by the information department of J&K, the Chief Secretary, Dr Arun Kumar Mehta J&K last month held deliberations with all the stakeholders including the Highway authorities for finding ways and means to further reduce the travel time on Sgr-Jmu National Highway for the Heavy Motor Vehicles (HMVs) ahead of the fruit season this year.

The Chief Secretary stated that we should not stop HMVs with fewer than 3 axles anywhere during their road travel. This was part of his recommendations for improving traffic flow on the road. He asked to keep an eye on chronically slow-moving vehicles and enquire from each of them about the reasons behind the same. He also advised penalizing those erratically moving vehicles under the law causing inconvenience to others traveling on this road.

Regarding the movement of fruit trucks from the valley the Chief Secretary had stressed on taking onboard the Fruit Associations while devising the traffic plan. Additionally, he requested the marking of fruit-laden trucks with specially designed stickers to facilitate their identification.

Moreover, he emphasized the importance of granting these vehicles unhindered access to reach the Mandis outside the city. Furthermore, he instructed the Deputy Commissioners of the valley to establish District Control Rooms in their offices. These control rooms would provide real-time updates to the fruit growers about the road conditions and other related issues.

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