SHILLONG, Oct 8: Shillong will get a facelift soon with better road infrastructure under the Shillong Smart City project.
Altogether 15.9 km of road has been identified to be developed as “smart roads” in two phases by the Shillong Smart City Limited. The state government recently floated tender for the construction of “Smart Roads Ph-II” (10 km) and beautification of 12 junctions.
According to the bidding document, smart roads would be constructed in 18 locations, including Jail Road, Bivar Road, Keating Road, Laitumkhrah Market to Fire Brigade via Beat House, Secretariat Hill Road, street connecting Keating Road and GS Road and Rhino Point to Last Stop Market.
The civil works include retrofitting of the identified existing roads to develop them into smart roads, such as road pavement (carriageway); bus bays, junction improvement works, protected footpaths/pedestrian walkways, pedestrian plazas, street furniture, road markings, road signage, utility ducts for various utilities such as water supply, power distribution system, communication (telephone, optical fibre cables), landscaping works, storm water drainage including culverts, etc.
The pipelines and pump rooms are to be provided to develop a network of external fire hydrants across all road stretches to be developed as smart roads.
In addition, 12 major junctions have been identified for beautification under Smart Road Project. These come within area-based development and are parts of smart roads.
The junctions identified are Barik Junction, Civil Junction, IGP point Junction, DC Junction, Police Bazar roundabout, Governor’s Junction, Dhankheti Junction, Don Bosco Junction etc. The estimated cost of the projects is Rs 134.5 crore. A similar initiative was taken earlier to beautify the Police Bazar area with tiles but the tiles have worn out since there is no maintenance.
While the road system is set to improve in Shillong, the public transportation system continues to remain unsatisfactory. In contrast, cities, including Guwahati, have an outstanding and cheaper public transportation system.
Shillong to this day is dependent on some SPTS buses and local taxis. Some ten years ago, around 100 SPTS buses were operating but most of those are off the roads now. The routes of the SPTS buses are not known to many and the buses are also not regular.
The city buses are the lifelines of commuters in Guwahati. Smaller vehicles (Magic), Ola and Uber are also integral parts of the public transportation system of the city.
Shillong does not have the app-based cab services. Some people say these services would add to traffic congestion and take away the livelihood of people. However, some others say the local taxis can operate under Ola and Uber. They cited the operation of auto-rickshaws under Ola and Uber in some cities, stating that it provides quick and affordable commuting.
“We should have more options of commuting within the city,” a Shillong resident said as he was waiting for a local taxi.
Shillong has bike taxi service but the riders allegedly demand more than the actual fare. Another problem here is that it is difficult to find a cab or bus after 9 pm. Even if one finds a cab, the driver would charge exorbitant fare.
Earlier, the government had spoken about introducing electric buses but nobody knows when they will be on the roads.
