Road-blocks affect business

Kandy road- blocks keep worsening despite numerous attempts by the state to facilitate smooth traffic flow.“We have pointed out so many times about various problems and suggested some measures to overcome this situation, but nothing seems to be working,” Meththananda Kodagola, President Mahanuwara Sinhala Welanda Peramuna, an association of traders said. He pointed out that one primary reason for heavy traffic is due to the haphazard bus routes.

“All the buses which go to different parts of the country passes Kandy town. Also, buses from Hewaheta, Hanguranketha, Wewalpitiya, etc come through Kandy and park at the Goodshed bus stand. We need to restrict many buses coming into Kandy,” he said. Many businessmen pointed out that the road network is not sufficient in the town. “This network is not enough in comparison to the amount of vehicles we have. We also need to have more byroads,” a businessman said. He said that the road network is very congested in Kandy-especially ‘Uda Para’ and William Gopallawa Mawatha on the old Kandy road. “These roads need to be made uni-flow, but sometime ago the traders protested, because their business would be affected,” he noted. M. D. Chandrasena, Secretary Mahanuwara Sinhala Welanda Peramuna said the government wants all motorists to park their cars in the car park, but it will create more problems in terms of trade.

“If the vehicles are forced to be parked at the car park, people tend to move out of the city, due to the hassle of walking around to buy their goods. Even now we feel that Kandy traders suffer a lot because of this system,” he added.