January 30 - On Saturday, 28th January, Pune joined the list of a very small number of cities that have taken the conscious decision to convert a road into a pedestrian plaza!
Although this is being done only on an experimental and temporary basis, and for a start only on Saturdays; with the enthusiastic response of citizens and most of the shopkeepers, there is little doubt that this will not only be a permanent feature but will eventually become a full time car-free street. A street, in Enrique Penalosa's words, "for people rather than for the automobile".
Reproduced below are two articles from the local media reporting that this transformation has been a BIG hit.
As a citizens' NGO working for a sustainable transportation policy in Pune for over 6 years, we are naturally thrilled by this development and look forward to seeing more streets losing their lethal baggage of auto vehicles and becoming more humane and pleasant for all people, young and old, male and female, rich and poor.
- Sujit Patwardhan
Pune Traffic & Transportation Forum,
c/o Parisar, "Yamuna",
ICS Colony,Ganeshkhind Road,
Pune 411 007, INDIA
Email: sujit@vsnl.com, sujitjp@gmail.com
You may as well call it WP now!
MG Road walking plaza trial proves a big hit
PUNE: The much-talked-about trial of a walking plaza on the Mahatma Gandhi Road proved to be a resounding success yesterday with no major bottlenecks hindering the implementation of the trial that began at 10 am.
The trial was a spectacle of veritable celebration with excited parents, and yelling children jostling for space to shake a leg with the Disney characters dancing to the racy tunes being belted out by DJ’s. from the Karma Group.
The entire road looked spick and span and was festooned with the PCB banners propagating the message of the walking plaza.
However, the trial evoked mixed reactions from the merchants. Whereas the Camp Merchants' Association had supported the trial, the Pune Camp Merchants' Association (PCMA ) registered their protest by waving black flags.
The entire stretch of this road from Aurora Towers to Mahavir Chowk was chock-a-block for the evening celebration, which was inaugurated by actress Rati Agnihotri. A highlight of the evening was watching Dr N B Grant and 15 members of the PRC, Khadki, enjoying a stroll on the M G Road. The PCB had pressed into service two PMT buses to ferry people from one end to another.
Celebrating a walk on MG Rd
By Saswati Sanyal
saswatis@sakalherald.com
PUNE: What would be your first reaction if the busiest street near your house is converted into a walking plaza? It may range from confusion to surprise to simply a sigh of relief over the end of traffic woes.
That was what Puneites experienced yesterday as they enjoyed a leisurely walk on M.G. Road, the first day of the Walking Plaza experiment.
On a pleasant afternoon, the road had a lazy charm to it comparable almost to a park. Families and couples strolled along the road in a relaxed mood.
No bikers or heavy vehicles to spoil the moment, the air is heavy with expectation, like something about to happen.
Frankly, I had never noticed that the road dotted with so many shops, big and small, had an almost old worldly feel to it minus the non-stop honking, like time had suddenly decided to stand still and watch the antics of people.
Most shops were open as shoppers had a chance of dabbling in some window shopping.
Said a passerby, "I don’t know what is going to happen, but it definitely feels good to walk at a leisurely pace on this road without worrying when the next vehicle will hit you.
Doesn’t the road look amazing without the continuous smoke and noise, as if we are seeing it for the first time!" He almost voiced my thoughts. It sure does, pal, and it really makes you want to convert every other road into one like this.
But, with M.G. Road completely blocked off for traffic, it is quite a rude jerk back to reality when you move away from it. I see a couple smiling at the face I make when I try to call for a rickshaw.
As my voice gets lost in the milieu, I look back at them and realize that the feeling was mutual. Guess, we all should just keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best.
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