Visakhapatnam Police to improve traffic in state’s new Executive capital

Visakhapatnam Police

Visakhapatnam Police have started exploring several options to ensure smooth flow of traffic post the government’s decision to make the city Executive capital of Andhra Pradesh.

Visakhapatnam Police

As per the senior police officials, the number of vehicles plying on the city roads will go up by a few thousand. In such a case, managing the 72 km stretch of National Highway 16 which passes through the city will be challenging. The NH-16 stretch is the arterial route connecting a few important strategic locations including the airport and the railway station.

Other than regular citizens, the highway is also used by political leaders and bureaucrats who drive in convoys. To make it a safe and hassle-free route is in itself a challenge as the stretch is also known for the most number of major accidents that are reported from the city.

As per MRK Raju, ACP (Traffic), there are a few defects and bottlenecks from an engineering point of view that need to be rectified. A few flyovers need to be built urgently to ensure a smooth flow of traffic. The police have identified five major junctions for flyovers – Marikavalasa, Hanumanthawaka, Maddilapalem, Thatchetlapalem, and Gajuwaka.

According to Rajeev Kumar Meena, Commissioner of Police, there are many junctions where traffic signals need to be realigned depending on the traffic flow.

Visakhapatnam police planning to build 24 underpasses or foot over-bridges (FOBs) along the highway stretch and locations for the same has been identified.

Lack of staff personnel is another challenge for the police to deal with. As per Meena, the Traffic Department has a strength of about 800 presently. At least an increase of 200 staff personnel is needed. Even the number of home guards need to be increased from 300 to 450, Meena added.