Colombo-Katunayake project rejected thrice due to lack of funds

The controversial Colombo-Katunayake Expressway project has been dropped thrice owing to lack of government funds while the construction of the Outer Circular Highway in Colombo city is to start next January, a roads’ specialist said.

Chairman of the Road Development Authority (RDA) M.B.S. Fernando also said there are plans to change the traffic lighting system from a fixed one to a vehicle-activated one with cameras which adjust the lights according to the number of vehicles present. He made these observations during a comprehensive presentation on highways under the theme of “Road Development for Economic Development; Challenges for Sri Lanka” at the Centre for Banking Studies last week.

Of the 98,200 km road network in Sri Lanka, 11,700 km are national highways, which is a little more than 10% of the overall road network while the rest belongs to Provincial Councils and Pradeshiya Sabhas. According to Fernando, RDA focuses accessibility and mobility, and the indicator of the former is road density, a factor on which Sri Lanka stands well. However, as for mobility, the indicator is the ease with which a destination can be reached by a motor vehicle, and on this there is a serious problem.

“Among the more obvious reasons for this is the inadequate width of the roads. Only two percent of roads are multiple lanes, or have a width greater than 9m, whereas 36% are single lanes with a width of less than 4m and another 36% are intermediates (widths between 4m and 5.5.m),” he said. A lesser known fact that Fernando highlighted was the problematic “car first” policy that is prevalent. Of the 750, 000 people who enter Colombo city daily from 12 entrance points, buses carry 55% of the passengers, but take up only 15% of road space. On the other hand, dual-purpose vehicles like cars and vans, along with the “tuk-tuks” or three-wheelers carry only 35% of the passenger load, but take up an enormous 65% of road space. “The available space is not used economically,” he said, adding that most cars on average carry only three to four passengers.

As a result of the high volume of traffic and the state of the roads, the number of people killed in road accidents in 2006 was 1044, an alarming number although it is a substantial decrease from 2002’s 2038. What’s interesting are the statistics under the label “damage only”. In 2006, the number was 8,148, approximately 28,000 accidents less than the 36, 862 in 2002. According to Fernando however, this is the result of the mushrooming “on-the-spot” insurance policies, which settle the claims without taking the case to the police. Ironically, officials in the insurance sector have said that they have settled 220,000 such cases. That would be a considerable addition to the numbers.

“What can be done about this is the question everyone is asking. The fastest solution of course would be to increase the number of lanes on existing roads by widening them, which, is not an easy task,” Fernando said.

In the past few years, Sri Lanka has seen mass “ribbon-development”, where the suburban development occurs alongside the roads. Widening the roads therefore, entails the acquisition of private lands and the demolishing of houses, stores etc. Besides this, there is also the building of High-Mobility Links or Expressways and flyovers.

“Funds are as always a problem” Fernando reiterated. Land acquisition requires compensation to the owners, and under a new policy, acquisitions are not done without up-front payments of compensation at a valuation made by the RDA at replacement cost, in addition to the government valuation. “US$ 7,500 million is required within the next 10 years to implement the National Road Master Plan to improve only one third of the national highways.

Even with the existing external commitment of US$ 500 million, there is huge amount of investment required. Also, private sector involvement is at a minimum and when the costs of foreign contractors are added to the equation, the figures are astronomical,” Fernando said.

There are also the environmental implications of building these roads. According to Fernando, in the case of the Southern Expressway (Colombo-Matara), the RDA has been forced, because of increasing protests by residents, to use low-lying areas to build, whereas it is the higher lands that are more compatible. “Clearing the marsh areas is interfering in the eco-system and could lead to problems in the future,” he added.

Fernando admits that “road construction will not solve the problem of congestion or pollution or any of it. The solution requires more intelligence, scope and money.

A Transport Policy like that of Singapore would be ideal,” he said. A participant at the lecture pointed out most roads were closed for security reasons and although petrol prices rise monthly, there is no change in congestion. Added to the melee, the public transport in the country is in an absolutely decrepit condition. (TR)