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Drivers yet to internalise decongestion system
2007-05-22 09:08:18
By Pascal Shao and Pastory Nguvu
The Decongestion system adapted by city authorities to reduce traffic jams in Dar es Salaam was yesterday received with mixed reaction, with some road users accepting and others remaining opposed to the mode.
The newly-introduced system was conceived at the end of a meeting between the Prime Minister, city fathers and transport sector stakeholders over the weekend. A pilot project started yesterday with two highways Morogoro and Ally Hassan Mwinyi.
In a cross-section interview with The Guardian, a city bus commuter, Jackie Lucas said: ``To some extent, this system has helped to reduce traffic jams…at least; you can now see vehicles moving on compared to the past.``
She said still there were long queues yesterday morning at some stretches along Ally Hassan Mwinyi Road, but these were moving at an encouraging speed.
Rashid Yusuf, a commuter bus driver plying between Mwenge and Posta through Morogoro Road, said the new system had to some extent reduced traffic jams which normally existed during rush hours.
He suggested that the allocated time for the new system be extended to 10am everyday as Morogoro Road congestion normally reaches peak at 9am.
``Otherwise, we thank the government for the initiative to consider time lost on the roads,`` he said.
However, Gabriel Mathew, a resident of Mbezi Louis, said the government should construct more roads instead of depending on the existing ones.
``The government should not deceive the people. It should instead construct more roads,`` he said.
He said the new system was likely to cause more accidents as drivers were yet to be conversant with the new mode.
Mathew said some drivers experienced problems on entering the added third lane as those driving from the opposite direction could also use the same lane when overtaking.
The Guardian witnessed chaos at Namanga junction along Ally Hassan Mwinyi Road as drivers tried to use the additional third lane.
Although there was little congestion of vehicles from new Post Office along Ally Hassan Mwinyi from 4pm, the situation changed from the junction between Kawawa Road and Ally Hassan Mwinyi.
This reporter observed a long queue of vehicles that caused commuter buses from New Post Office to spend almost 45 minutes between Morocco and Mwenge Bus Terminal.
All vehicles that used the road seemed to continue using the same system of one-way they were used to and there was no traffic police to direct the drivers on how to use the new system.
Asked to comment, Chief Traffic Police James Kombe said the new system started yesterday with minor problems, adding that it was still early to comment about it.
He said: ``The beginning is always hard. Let us give it some time by trying today (Monday) and tomorrow (today) morning, after which we can be in a position to comment”. Kombe advised drivers to follow the directives of the traffic police officer to avoid chaos.
In March this year, Prime Minister Edward Lowassa ordered the Dar es Salaam City Council authorities to ensure that serious measures were taken to reduce traffic congestion in the city.
He gave May 15 as the deadline for the authorities to submit a report to his office on how to do away with the problem. The city fathers in turn submitted the report a week and a half ago.
The PM met Dar es Salaam authorities last Saturday to discuss the issue. They agreed that all four-way roads must be used as three-way during pick hours for vehicles going towards a single direction.
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