Lane Rule Violators

One recent evening, I was cycling to my office. As I entered the busy road east of Tundikhel from Exhibition Road, a bus was moving slowly in the left lane designated for vehicles heading towards Singha Durbar and Maitighar. As I was bound for New Road, I needed to cross that lane to move into the right lane. 

When I attempted to do so, the bus began edging towards the right lane, picked up speed, and blocked my way several times. Finally, frightening several bikers and passenger vehicles, the bus abruptly swerved into the right lane before reaching Bhadrakali Temple. A car driver popped his head out of the window and voiced his ire at the bus driver.

The same day, a motorbike overtook a slow-moving bus and entered the lane in which the bus was travelling. In the process, the bike struck a pedestrian who had haphazardly stepped into the heavy traffic by crossing the railings. As the pedestrian sustained no injuries, the biker escaped with nothing more than a hurried ‘sorry’. You may have experienced similar incidents or accidents while driving, riding or walking through the streets of the Kathmandu Valley. Discipline seems to be observed by none. 

At the very least, you may have seen a microbus suddenly twisting its way towards Nepal Airlines Corporation at New Road directly from the Tundikhel gate. These microbuses create a particularly fearful situation for bike riders because of their reckless driving. Instead of gradually shifting to the extreme left lanes—where they are supposed to drop off their last set of passengers and pick up new ones—they speed up to the Tundikhel gate and take a dangerous turn.

Traffic police are often visible, but they rarely take notice of such behaviour. There are only a few designated locations, such as Thapathali Junction, where drivers or riders are penalised or fined for failing to follow lane discipline. Typically, the penalty costs Rs 1,000 and an hour spent on attending an awareness class conducted by the traffic police. Recently, a motorbike and two scooters disrupted traffic for more than 20 minutes on the narrow and busy street of Bhotebahal as they attempted to overtake despite traffic already being gridlocked. They blocked the opposite lane, and even pedestrians were unable to pass through.

Last month, I was stuck at Daunne hill in Nawalparasi for more than four hours. There was no rain, no landslide and no accident. When the jeep I was travelling in inched forward cautiously, it became clear that microbuses had blocked the opposite lane while attempting to overtake a queue of around 200 large and small vehicles. The road had effectively become one-way due to culvert construction. Just a day earlier, it had taken only 50 minutes to cross Daunne Hill. The following day, however, microbuses and minibuses brought traffic to a standstill, because of which I missed my flight to Kathmandu from Bharatpur. 

We have also seen people entering the Ring Road from exit points and exiting from entry points. Those who neither know nor follow such basic rules should be taken off the road for a certain period—ranging from a week to a month—by confiscating their driving licences. There are even more extreme violations: passengers alighting from buses are hit by motorbike riders attempting to overtake buses from the left at bus stops. Stern action must be taken, and heavy fines imposed, on drivers and riders who violate lane rules. This is essential to ensure smoother traffic flow and, above all, the safety of everyone on the streets.