News
Kandy’s new terminus sends people buzzing from stand to stand
After a bus terminus with the capacity to accomadate 26 buses at a time and cost millions of rupees, was opened at Bogambara in Kandy, it was believed the chaotic traffic situation in Kandy would end.
The traffic situation in Kandy is now worse, after the Bogambara bus terminus was built
But now it is worse than ever. The Bogambara bus terminus has only one exit, which creates a traffic block from Kandy town onwards. This in turn creates another block from D.S. Senanayake Street to the Goodshed bus stand and the Railway station junction.
The cost of the project was Rs 16.9 million.
This bus stand had only created more chaos, because about six or seven bus stands that cater to buses that travel from Kandy to distant places including Matara and Jaffna were already operating.
When the old Goodshed bus stand operated people knew where the buses were. There was also an office, which regulated the various routes, and complaints could be made there. But, now the commuters have to buss around from stand to stand to find the relevant buses.
The Traffic Law provided requires people to be notified of any changes in the traffic procedure in the Sinhala, Tamil and English media. But this was not done. Commuters had to run from one place to another in search of buses.
For example, the buses in most demand, the Digana-Kandy buses had been shifted to the Dangolla, Heerasagala and Bowalawatte bus stand. These destinations had come under the Clock Tower bus stand. People had to wait for hours for their buses, because they were waiting in the wrong place.
The terminus has only one exit, which creates a traffic block from Kandy town onwards.
When the new Central Province Road Authority Chairman visited the Malwatta Mahanayake, the Prelate said people were stranded in the night without buses and the Chairman should have attended to this issue.
After 7 pm it had been difficult to find a bus to even travel from Kandy to Peradeniya, a distance of five km, because the bus service was such a mess.
This situation should be corrected as soon as possible because school children, public and private sector employees find it difficult to travel to their destination.
Commuters ask whether there is a hidden hand between the bus crews and the three wheelers?
When the Sunday Times contacted the Kandy Police Traffic Division, the Officer in Charge said he remembered around three thousand handbills being distributed and several posters put up about the change in bus stands.
“Perhaps this was not enough, as people coming into Kandy from the outskirts might not know,” the OIC said.
He said he would discuss with the Central Province Road Authority on how best they could implement an awareness campaign.