National People’s Power (NPP) Parliamentarian Samanmalee Gunasinghe has called for discussions with the management of Lyceum International School in Nugegoda to address severe traffic congestion during morning and school closing hours.
She made the remarks during a discussion held at the Colombo District Secretariat.
Gunasinghe said traffic congestion at both the Kohuwala and Nugegoda junctions had also been discussed at the Kohuwala Coordinating Committee meeting.
A police officer who participated in the discussion said the high volume of traffic in Nugegoda was partly due to the large number of schools and tuition classes operating in the area.
However, Gunasinghe said the situation was being aggravated by vehicles blocking three main traffic lanes at the Nugegoda junction during morning and school closing hours.
She noted that although several schools in the area had introduced alternative arrangements to minimise traffic congestion, the problem had continued in connection with one major school.
“There are several national schools near the Nugegoda junction. Schools such as St. John’s and St. Joseph’s manage traffic during peak hours. They use alternative arrangements without allowing vehicles to come right up to the school. However, the continuing problem we face is that all three lanes are blocked near Lyceum School in the morning and when school ends,” she said.
Gunasinghe said the situation had also created difficulties for police officers deployed on traffic duty, as the obstruction of three main lanes made it difficult to manage other vehicles.
She said the problem would be difficult to control unless discussions were held with the school management and an appropriate solution was reached.
Gunasinghe also stressed that the existing traffic congestion in Nugegoda should be taken into consideration when approving the establishment of new institutions in the area.
“How can we avoid the Nugegoda junction? The roads cannot be widened any further. Therefore, we must study this problem at the main junction, inform the relevant institutions and find a solution,” she added.
