While motorcyclists began blowing horns to their fullest, irate passengers onborad public vehicles stuck for hours chanted slogans against the hardships caused due to the president´s motorcade. Traffic police deployed at Exhibition Road were seen turning off the engines of motorcycles and vehicles as the continuous honking turned just unbearable. [break]
"This is just not tolerable," said Bikram Adhikari, who was stuck in a tempo bound to New Road. "This happens every time when there is a VIP visit. Why don´t the authorities choose them to take through helicopters?"
Police on Sunday stopped buses, trucks and other heavy vehicles from entering inside the Ring Road half-an-hour before the President left Shital Niwas at 4:45 p.m.
All major thoroughfares in the capital witnessed heavy traffic jams by the time the motorcade finally reached Jawalakhel through Maharajgunj, Lainchaur, Durbarmarg, Bhadrakali, Singha Durbar and Bagmati Bridge, Kupondole. Traffic police said it took nearly 20 minutes for the president´s escort.
On return, the motorcade had some changes in its route as it went from Singha Durbar to Bhadrakali, Sundhara, Kesharmahal and Lainchaur to Shital Niwas.
DIG Binod Singh, chief of Metropolitan Traffic Police Division, said police stopped vehicles from entering into the route of the president´s motorcade some five to seven minutes prior to the motorcade´s arrival.
"Due to that, I think vehicles were stuck for half-an-hour at one particular place. There might have some ballooning effect at other places," he reasoned.
However, eyewitnesses said vehicles were stopped at 4:15 p.m. itself at Pulchowk while the motorcade, according to Singh, was scheduled to leave Shital Niwas by 4:45 p.m. Some motorcyclists stuck at Pulchowk and other places complained that they were queued for nearly two hours.
While commoners found at roads and streets had a shared feelings that there was no feeling of change for the people in replacing the king by a people-elected president, DIG Singh argued there was no alternative to providing foolproof security to the head of the state during his formal visits.
"It is not only the case in Nepal. It´s practiced worldwide mainly for two reasons -- for ensuring security to the president and to avoid traffic accidents during the time," he said. He maintained that one must be ready to sacrifice some time for the security of the VVIPs.
According to him, during the president´s unofficial visit, vehicular movement is stopped only along a single lane while vehicles are allowed to ply on the other lane.
Singh said there can be no change in the rule. "The only option to lessen long traffic jams is to follow an alternate route for VVIP visits," he said. "But that is not possible in the existing infrastructure in Kathmandu."
Singh claims that Sunday´s traffic management was relatively comfortable as it was public holiday. Had it been a normal day, it would have been extremely bad for commuters and others.
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