Traffic bottleneck outside Sarath City Capital Mall leaves motorists stranded for hours on Gachibowli–Miyapur corridor; underpass, skywalk pitched
A traffic bottleneck outside Sarath City Capital Mall in Kondapur has become one of Hyderabad’s worst congestion hotspots, with motorists spending up to two hours
A traffic bottleneck outside Sarath City Capital Mall in Kondapur has become one of Hyderabad’s worst congestion hotspots, with motorists spending up to two hours negotiating a few hundred metres during peak hours. The situation has escalated to the point where Cyberabad authorities have warned the mall management to address the issue or face action, including the possibility of a closure notice. The choke point sits on the Gachibowli–Miyapur road, one of Hyderabad’s busiest arterial corridors that carries around 1.2 lakh vehicles every day. Despite the construction of a 22-ft-wide underpass last year connecting the mall’s parking area to the main road, congestion continues to spill over from the mall entrance to Botanical Garden junction and up to the Radisson Hotel, disrupting movement along the entire corridor. “Three lanes of traffic coming from the Botanical Garden side combine with another three lanes exiting the mall parking. This si lane traffic is forced into just two lanes between the mall and the Kothaguda junction, where the available carriageway suddenly narrows. That is the primary reason for the long traffic queues,” explained Gachibowli Traffic Inspector Gona Suresh.
The problem is compounded by the absence of a dedicated pick-up and drop-off facility for cabs and autorickshaws. Thousands of shoppers wait for rides directly outside the mall entrance while cabs and autos queue on the carriageway, occupying valuable road space. “Although the road in front of the mall has four lanes, more than two lanes are occupied by waiting autos and cabs. Visitors gathering near the entrance slow vehicle movement further, making entry into the mall difficult and blocking another lane of traffic,” the officer said. According to Cyberabad Taffic Police estimates, the mall attracts between 50,000 and 60,000 visitors on an average day, besides employing around 3,500 to 4,500 people. Weekend footfall rises to between 1.5 lakh and 2.5 lakh visitors, with nearly 1.5 lakh to 1.8 lakh people arriving during the peak evening hours between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. During festive periods, daily footfall exceeds three lakh, while more than six lakh visitors turned up during last Christmas alone. For commuters, these numbers translate into long delays. Several visitors reported spending between 45 minutes and one-and-a-half hours just to exit the parking facility, while crossing the stretch outside the mall can take nearly two hours during peak periods.
The BriefWire