No end to woes of commuters on ISB road as work continues at snail's pace

HYDERABAD: With the `open' side of the ISB road constantly getting flooded every time it rains, hundreds of commuters travelling to Gachibowli from Financial District are now forced to take alternate routes. The detour has added more than 30 minutes to their travel time, say commuters.
“The work unfolding on one side of the road is now causing a flood-like situation on the other side, every time it rains. While waterlogging was always an issue on this stretch, the situation has worsened now and severe traffic jams form on this road every single day. I am forced to take a detour and reach Financial District through the Outer Ring Road (ORR) now,“ said Ankita Shyam, a resident of Kondapur.

With an increasing number of people using the ORR now, traffic jams have become a daily affair here as well.

“The traffic on the ORR has increased multi-fold over the past month. People heading towards Gachibowli, from the airport, are also getting stuck in traffic at the ORR for more than 30 minutes. I have witnessed major congestion at the Gachibowli exit point of the ORR,“ informed Sunny Thomas, an IT professional.

Others pointed out how the one-way rule implemented by traffic cops on the ISB road is causing a lot of confusion among commuters, “Due to the one-way rule that traffic cops have put in place, I am now forced to travel to Nanakramguda and from there to Gachibowli, in order to return from work. It has added a good six kilometres to my usual commute distance,“ said Manish Reddy, a resident of Gachibowli.

Others pointed out how many were also found violating this rule, thus resulting in chaos.

“The traffic cops have implemented a one-way rule at the ISB road in such a manner that people travel ling to the Financial District can always use the road. For those residing in apartments on the ISB road and for commuters who wish to travel to Gachibowli from the Financial District, this has caused a major inconvenience. People can be found flouting this one-way rule unabated, on the ISB road, in order to reach their destinations faster. The lack of proper sign boards, that declare the road as a one-way, is causing a lot of confusion and traffic chaos and sometimes it takes me 2 hours to reach my Microsoft office. Authorities should have planned this better,“ rued Anumod Alex Thomas, an IT professional and a resident of BHEL.