Pedestrians are struggling to traverse city roads, what with unimaginatively designed skywalks, absent or encroached footpaths and reckless drivers giving them a nightmare.
Lack of proper footpaths at busy junctions such as Vyttila and Kacherippady, for instance, forces pedestrians to bypass traffic rules and resort to jaywalking.
“Crossing Vyttila Junction during the peak hours is a dangerous gamble, but we have no other option,” said Dhanya Kumar (name changed), a resident of Vyttila.
Encroachments
It is a different problem that pedestrians at the High Court Junction face—vehicles being parked on the footpath, and street vendors having encroached upon the area, hindering free pedestrian mobility. However, lack of adequate space for parking tempts people to park vehicles on footpaths, claimed a taxi driver, who did not want to be named.
Skywalks
Though skywalks were introduced at five spots (Edappally Junction, near EMC Hospital, Chalikkavattom, Kannadikkadu, and near Kerala University of Fisheries and Oceanic Sciences at Madavana) on the Edappally-Aroor stretch of the NH bypass, the steel-fabricated structures are extremely unpopular with pedestrians. Their height and design make them almost inaccessible to senior citizens and the differently abled.
“Climbing the stairs of this 20-foot-high bridge is almost an adventure for an ageing footslogger like me,” said K.G. Joseph, 66, who prefers crossing the road to using the foot overbridge at Edappally. Provision of escalators instead of stairs would have made the skywalks more user-friendly, he said.
Few takers
“It was following public demand that foot overbridges were constructed, but except for a handful of young travellers, including students, the bridges are of no use,” admitted P.G. Radhakrishnan, councillor from Edappally.
At the foot overbridge near Ernakulam Medical Centre, an existing zebra crossing has been blackened out, ostensibly to force pedestrians to use the overbridge. But pedestrians continue to use the distinguishable markings to cross the road, as vehicles zip past, with the blackened-out zerbra line barely visible to drivers.
“People darting across the supposedly concealed zebra line often put themselves in danger of being hit by vehicles. But because of inadequate manpower in the department, we provide assistance only from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.,” said a civil police officer posted near EMC to assist pedestrians to safely cross the highway.
Walkability study
Nearly 18 accidents involving pedestrians were reported in the city this year, according to a source in the traffic police. According to reports of the Walkability Study Kochi (a study by HealthBridge Foundation of Canada on the walkability and pedestrian facilities in Kochi) of 2017, only 62% of roads in the city have sidewalks on both sides. While 16% have sidewalks only on one side, the remaining 22% roads have no sidewalks at all.