By Sampada Anuranjanee Khatiwada

Kathmandu, Dec. 27: As they connect all parts of the Kathmandu Valley through the routes of public buses, Ratnapark, Jamal and Old Bus Park are the busiest hub of the city.
Dense crowd with never stopping traffic is not a new thing for Ratna Park, one of the oldest parks of Kathmandu.
The sight of people flowing in the Ratna Park area, however wasn’t much of a treat to our eyes.
Thick crowd flow in the area has consequently ruptured the beauty of the roundabouts in the oldest park of Kathmandu.
Amid the bustling roads with never ending line of vehicles running to and fro, a huge number of people were seen violating traffic rules.
Mismanagement of waste and people throwing waste everywhere has downgraded the beauty of the heart of the city.
People, in their hundreds, were seen crossing the road from right under the overhead bridges.
One of the pedestrians who was crossing the road below the sky-bridge said, “I am in a hurry, which is why I preferred crossing the road from below the bridge.”
Another pedestrian, who was found ignoring the overhead bridge, said, “The bridge is too crowded and congested, which is why I cross the road from here.”
He also said that the risk of pickpocketing was high in the overhead bridge.
The overhead bridge at Jamal and Ratnapark areas looked like they were the ‘hub’ for the people to bask in the sun and to run their business.
Ashok Silwal, 23, a student, who was on the bridge said that the crowded bridge had made it difficult for him to cross the road. “People tend to gather without any reason at the top of the bridge,” he said.
“The street vendors selling goods on the bridge has made commuters like us to cross the bridge,” Silwal said.
Many of the vendors were seen spreading wares just next to human excreta in the city which was declared open defecation-free months back.
“The flow of people on the overhead bridge fascinated me to run a business here,” said Sashikala Katuwal, a street vendor selling socks and handkerchiefs on the overhead bridge of Jamal. “I acknowledge that we have made the bridge congested, but this is how we have been managing our breads.”
Ashika Shrestha, 26, who was walking on the footpath, said that people ignoring traffic rules in places like Ratna Park, where the flow of vehicles is high, is a catalyst for increasing road accidents.
Prakash Datta Ojha, police personnel of Traffic Police Office Jansewa, said, “Drivers aren’t only the ones who are responsible for accidents. Pedestrians are equally responsible.”
There are only a few of the pedestrians with civic consciousness to cross roads from zebra crossings, said Ojha. “The number of drivers who are aware that they should slow down in zebra crossing is less,” Ojha said. “They are usually seen not giving priority to the pedestrians.”
Ojha said that the zebra crossings were made as per the specified standards. The pedestrians, however, want zebra crossings in a short distance, he added.
Shrestha said that the people crossing roads from wherever they want, drivers and riders ignoring the traffic rules and not slowing

down in zebra crossings, drinking and driving were the major causes behind increasing road fatalities within the valley.
Baikuntha Pokharel, another traffic personnel from Metropolitan Traffic Police Durbarmarg, also said that accidents didn’t always take place due to the negligence of vehicle drivers.
Pokharel said that the tippers and mini-trucks were the culprits in causing accidents.
The flow of motorcycle riders is uncontrollable, he lamented.
“Negligence of pedestrians, drivers and concerned authorities are the prime reasons leading to increasing accidents in the valley.”
We cannot look after everyone who crosses the road from below the overhead bridges, he added.