Sirhaul Toll plaza: Basic flaws lead to mess

11 October, 2012

Without even bothering to think about the people who work in Ambience Mall or in the adjacent areas, the Punjab and Haryana High court ordered that the U-Turn on Sirhaul Toll plaza on NH-8 be closed down, in a bid to make the traffic movement smooth during peak hours.

ON WEDNESDAY, when people protested this move and demanded U-turn be opened, Haryana Police resorted to a mild laathicharge to scare away the protesters. "How many times am I supposed to pay toll just to reach home? The journey also consumes a lot more time," a protester Chattar Singh, resident of Ambience Lagoon told The Times of India.

Protesters stood at the U -Turn and parked their vehicles on road while demanding that the U-turn be opened. This led to a long traffic jam, which extended beyond 400 meters limit set by the court. The worst situation was seen at Delhi side of toll as the traffic queues extended till Radisson Hotel in Mahipalpur. But police and local authorities other than listening and understanding to the problems of protesters charged laathis on them.

Much to the relief of commuters, Gurgaon's 'messiah' Praveen Kumar decided to open the U-turn. He did it against the court order, but Kumar is reported to have said media that they have enough video evidence to present in the court.

The toll plaza has some basic flaws, which are responsible for the mess. The bisection of roads just after the toll towards Gurgaon leading to all the problems. People standing in extreme right window of toll who want to go to Gurgaon, DLF or Ambience Mall have to take a sudden left after paying toll and can not afford to go straight towards Jaipur even by mistake, because there is no U-turn for them till the next flyover.