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MANGALORE: The coastal city will get its first signal-free corridor at Hampankatta Junction within a fortnight.

 The trial run for this started at 4pm on Tuesday and continued till late in the night. After the initial chaos in the first 90 minutes orderly traffic was restored at the busy Hampankatta Junction .

Mangalore city assistant commissioner of police (traffic) Uday Nayak who proposed the idea after seeing the functioning of signal-free corridors in Bangalore, said, "It is going better than we expected. The signal-free corridor will be operational within a fortnight. We will have to put up some signs, complete strip markings and widen the right turn near Syndicate Bank on the Light House Hill Road so that the buses can come back to Hampankatta junction without a hitch." According to the original plan the buses were supposed to go to Ambedkar Circle then come back to Hampankatta Junction.

 The signal-free corridor will allow the flow of traffic in straight lines from Hampankatta towards Light House Hill and Milagres towards AB Shetty Circle. There will be a free left side from KS Rao Road towards Light House Hill Road and from Hampankatta towards KS Rao Road.

 Four-wheelers and two-wheelers should take a right at the Syndicate Bank to join Balmatta Road to hit the Hampankatta Junction and then to proceed towards Attavar area. Likewise, vehicles from Milagres will have to travel towards Clock Tower Circle and come back to go to KS Rao Road.

 Nayak said the plan is still at the preliminary stage and that they will fine tune it in the the week.

 Pedestrians’ nightmare

 Pedestrians had a tough time while crossing the road during the trial run. Nayak said this will be sorted out in the coming week.

 Auto drivers were seen hurrying to the middle of the junction only to be told by police personnel that the route has been altered. Likewise, people from Falnir Road waited to cross the junction towards KS Rao Road. However, cops ensured that the exercise went without a hitch.

 "Now, there is no vehicle pile-up near the Hampankatta Junction at all the four roads which join it. We may have to put humps on Balmatta Road where vehicles join the road from the Syndicate Bank right turn as the vehicles are speeding,’’ said Nayak.

Factfile

 According to the statistics from the office of the deputy commissioner, an average of 276 vehicles pass through the Hampankatta Circle every minute between 8am and 9am. The average number of vehicles increases to 322 per minute between 9am and 10am. Similarly an average of 295 vehicles pass the circle per minute from 10am to 11am, 302 vehicles from 4pm to 5pm and 317 vehicles from 6pm to 7pm.