The following schemes are currently under study by the Government of Mauritius;
- Bus lane along St Jean Road
- Bus lane from Trianon to Port-Louis
- Traffic management schemes for the South bound traffic at the northern entrance of Port-Louis
- Use of the grade-separated junction (autopont) at Pailles for vehicles using the third lane to Port-Louis
- La Louise traffic management scheme
- Synchronization of traffic lights at the entrance of Port-Louis.
- Toll Fee traffic
Online Submission until the 13th September 2010. More Comments Earn more points
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ReplyDeletehttp://www.answers.com/topic/traffic-congestion
We should envisage using ferries for coastal destinations.
ReplyDeleteArnaud
ReplyDeleteGreat for a start, i think some words missing, around 192.
Please dont wait until friday to post your comments. I shall leave this assignment open on discussion forum with all members until the 13th September 2010.
ReplyDeleteSo start earning points now with your comments. What you have to say with Arnaud comments!!!
I think that Arnaud is right. Moreover, if we had a better Bus service in Mauritius, more people will be inclined to travel by bus to and from their workplace
ReplyDeleteWill ferries alleviate traffic problem? I suggest Arnaud is referring to traffic problem in Port Louis. Well the major issues over traffic issues in PL is the result of the vehicle float from the south and centre. And considering the type of sea we have in the Indian Ocean (Gris etc.. ) ferries would not be most appropriate. Furthermore, 80% of vehicles entering Port Louis from the South, comes from the Plain Wilhems. I will rather suggest proper traffic management, combined wih bus lanes and other alternatives. I will come back with more detailed and worked out plans soon.
ReplyDeleteThe toll fee would it really have an effect on the traffic flow to the capital? I don't think so as certainly employers would subsidise it
ReplyDeleteIn Mauritius, ferries cannot be used as more harbours need to be built and this will not be sustainable.
ReplyDeleteBus Lanes ok but with the type of services the bus company are providing I won't dare travel in one the problem to my opinion will be the same. Moreover, most private companies and some civil servant get an attractive package with travel grants. Tomorrow i'll post the package offered to civil servant through the PRB Report and then I'll leave it to you to say if this contribute to alleviate traffic problem!!!
ReplyDeleteArchimedes- Stated "Give me a fulcrum and I shall move the world". I would say give me a fulcrum long enough and I will move Port Louis :)
ReplyDeleteIt is obvious that if the government agrees to traffic managememt system, along with bus lane. They will also consider the issue of travel grant. Why not have a more attractive package for those who agree to have their car parked outside Port Louis, why not Reduit. The package for travel grant varies according to Position held. Besides, it won't be a real issue for government servant entering Port Louis, since most of them already have parking spaces allocated, by their office. The idea would be to reduce vehicles occupying public parking spaces a whole day.
ReplyDeleteI don't agree with this I think that the idea is to reduce the number of vehicles travelling to and from Port Louis thus parking spaces won't be an sissue anymore. I agree completely with you when you propose to have an attractive package; but won't we displace the problem from Port Louis to Reduit if people are to park their vehicle let say as you suggested at Reduit.
ReplyDeleteNot at all, the reason behind traffic jam at Port Louis, is about poor planning. Port Louis is a bottleneck today. Having parking at Reduit doesn't mean having one small road accessing 10000 parkings spaces. It need be a well structured and planned infrastructure. Catering for a fluent flow of vehicles in, and vehicles out (Bus or rather coaches since you stated the poor standard service of buses). The flow of vehicle In, need be equal to at least twice the actual maximum flow rate of vehicles nowadays. Cause we should cater for the expanding number of vehicles. It is a technical issues and need be analysed in more details. Using appropriate mathematical models and simulations.
ReplyDeleteI like your idea but I'll suggest Bagatelle instead of Reduit ( You certainly know how parking facilities is at the UOM). Why don't we proposed a modern Parking Place instead of the Mall at Bagatelle:) Sure we'll have a lot of convincing to do:)
ReplyDeleteYes! Indeed u can have it at bagatelle or just after the Volkswagen Agency... As long as we haev enough space to accomodate for the vehicle flow. It should not turn out to be another PL.
ReplyDeleteI believe for the case of Port Louis, toll road can prove inefficient since the former being the capital city of Mauritius, encompassing the harbour, textile and chemical industries, the government house etc. Large number of vehicles converging there is inevitable. Installation of Toll fee road will require the vehicles to stop or slow down and this shall worsen the already affected traffic flow. A toll fee road may work only after Port Louis has been greatly decentralized- the process of dispersing-making governance closer to the people/citizen. Then the introduction of toll fee road together with parallel roads by-passing the capital can prove fruitful.
ReplyDeleteThis idea will certainly alleviate problems in the capital but from let say Phoenix Round About to Reduit the flow of vehicle will be the same!
ReplyDeletemy previous comment was for Chinnayya but Yash you're right if Port Louis was decentralised the problem of traffic congestion will fade by itself
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSir-Should we elaborate on the "schemes studied by the government" you posted above or should we come up on our own schemes for the assignment?
ReplyDeleteI started by discussing each scheme one by one( 200 words each) Am i on the right track here?
Thank You.
Yash the process of decentralization been implemented since the early 90's. When the NTA and other government services were decentralized. However, the growing float of vehicle in the country (in excess of 10,000 new vehicles yearly), has only contributed to the actual state of traffic in the capital, and will only worsen if nothing efficient and practical is done. May be having a new port (e.g. at Grand Port) can help reduce the overall logistics required in pl.
ReplyDeleteTraffic Jam= Flow In- Flow Out= +ve
ReplyDeleteThe moment you have Flow In- Flow Out= -Ve, i.e. why I stated twice the actual maximum flow rate, in suhc a case there should be no traffic jam neither from pheonix nor elsewhere. Cause you are allowing for a constant and smooth flow of vehicles. Except for un-expected circustances such as major accidents etc... but still the problem wouldn't be to the same extent as now.
Are you sure that the Government is decentralizing Port Louis!! With the number of Ministries still in P-Louis I think that government should speed up. I've been thinking about Mahebourg 4 a new port but Grand Port too may do
ReplyDeletePriority should be given to public transportation. The 3 Main lanes directing to PL, two of them should be reserved for buses only.The 3rd lane for vehicles. In Port Louis,the parking fee during daylight should be tripled. More highways should be built.
ReplyDeleteHighway from Verdun to Terre Rouge is being constructed,this may alleviate the traffic jam a bit.
But Chinnaya your concept is good but parking vehicles outside Port Louis, specially in Reduit???How that?Reduit is the heart of Mauritius where vehicles,all around Mauritius have to travel, in order to reach their appropriate destination. For e.g From south to North, we should pass thru Reduit. Moreover students and even lecturers dont even get parking in Reduit, How come the rest will have parkings there...
(BHOWRUTH)
ReplyDeleteSome solution can be:
Improve congestion at round-abouts, through overhead free-ways, more intelligent signal operated controls.
A Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) an express route “exclusively” for buses.
(Buses must be fitted with two or more doors of adequate dimensions to enable passengers to enter and exit quickly)
Well planned road.
Sir,should we come with a new scheme or should we discuss on the existing scheme??
ReplyDeleteI think other means of transportation should be introduced in mauritius. many alternative ways of transport exist all around the world, even if they can be costly, they are sustainable and moreover most of them are eco-friendly, for e.g electric trains...
ReplyDeleteThe reason for so many cars on our roads today is because more and more people are traveling alone in their cars when they could use public transports or carpooling. Sure bus lanes will allow buses to arrive at their destination faster but this will not reduce congestion for the other road users.
ReplyDeleteAs a starting point the University of Mauritius should start cooperating with those concerned with this issue. This would translate into research projects being carried out by the students who will be involved in the transportation field in the future. Maybe, the lack of researchers in Mauritius has been hampering the conclusion of these projects. Design and feasibility studies are usually contracted out to foreigners and it is to be debated whether these persons do have a knowledge of the local situation. Surveys carried out provide information which are only numeric in nature and lay the foundation for statistical analyses. Mauritians with such expertise would be able to understand these data and complement it with the experience of being stuck in traffic jams day in day out...
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rashed...the electric trains can be used. conversion of solar energy into electrical energy is more sustainable. More eco friendly and at the same time,more rapid when compared to car drivers n so on. This might be a choice for travellers. If they dont wish to use the public transportation, they can use trains.
ReplyDeleteWell done, everybody who has commented. Yash went on the right track and so did Pheale. You may also eleborate on the schemes and come out with some original ideas and how you want it to be implemented in mauritius. Jetty could replace harbours as we have in numerous place like Venise, Dubai etc.But the main traffic is in teh Centre Part of the Plaine Wilhems and Port Louis. Ferries could help for coastal regions to Port Louis. Trains, Tube and roads with non stop junctions with the inclusion of slip lanes are plausible.
ReplyDeleteFriends check out this link below.
ReplyDeleteAn overhead bus that runs on electric power and does not take any ground-space. It should be implemented in Beijing next year.
I personally think its the most sustainable mode of transportation ever... See for yourself..
http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2010-08/chinas-straddling-bus-carries-passengers-overhead-lets-traffic-pass-underneath
thanks Yash a very interesting concept!! We'll surely have great discussion abot this. But this in Mauritius?? Look how much time is wasted on the Metro Leger to introduce this?? But personally i appreciate witnessing it. Very impressive
ReplyDeleteGood try Yash, but I would say rather infeasible.
ReplyDelete- How do you cope with lorries 3 m high
- How do you do with vehicles overtaking or at junctions
- Will we remove all round abouts when implementing such transportation, will definitely need to.
- In case of a break down and a vehicle is parked by the side, how do we do with the bus. will need to widen the road.
It's a good initiative Yash, but unless you can provide a clear and concise implementation strategy, I would rather say you are somewhat off track. The road conditions in Mauritius compared to China's Metropols is a world apart. China road network mak use of flyovers without round abouts.
i think that another motorway should be built linking the south to the north without passing through Port Louis.
ReplyDeleteAnother motorway would be good but the problem in Port Louis would still be the same since the majority of the offices would still be situated there.the motorway is not the problem here since everyday the majority of influx of cars are directing to the center of Port Louis.
ReplyDeleteWhat if the parking lot is made near Port Louis itself...
Then we could implement a tram along the streets of port louis.There should be several of them and the people working in Port Louis would be using them to travel to and fro.
Then only important vehicles would be allowed to travel along the streets of Port Louis.
BHOWRUTH
ReplyDeleteCar GPS navigation systems can also a solution for traffic congestion.
Transit upgrades, telecommuting, carpooling, congestion pricing and other programs are getting impressive results. check the following link friends...http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/traffic-congestion-solutions-460210
ReplyDelete@ reed_mufc..i agree that there will be still traffic jams in Port Louis. But the fact that vehicles coming from Plaine Wilhems and the south which are going to the north, won't accumulate at Port Louis.
ReplyDeletePaid parking zones along the Port-Louis main roads are limited to a period of 2 hours. Increase in reserved parkings by private firms and Commercial centers will result in traffic congestion. Parkings at les Salines will be replaced by a project from Indien Patel group, Neotown.350 vehicles will now have to be parked in the city. At the expiring of the moratorium, there will be traffic congestion in the morning at peak hours. It is a strategic parking site to reduce traffic congestion, international experts say that Victoria bus terminal should be placed there as it is near Port-Louis.
ReplyDeleteLack of coordination between technicians of the Road Development Authority, Ministry of Infrastructure and Police Traffic Branch favors traffic congestion. For e.g. the structure separating M1 road from Pailles to Caudan is of concrete. In case of accidents, no diversions are possible and also lack of policemen in peak hours favors traffic congestion.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, choosing the most competent contractors for the construction project is important as compared to works undergone by Wastewater Management Authority at Royal Road near Rose-Hill Police Station to Super-U lasting for more than a month.
Travellers residing in the centre n moving to the north,can use the way of La Nicoliere passing through Nouvelle Decouvert. But the problem is that most drivers fear to take that route because the road is quite small n a bit risky. The problem can be resolved if the RDA could put a bit of emphasis on that.
ReplyDeleteTraffic congestion can also be reduced by using-variable message signs-it is an electronic traffic sign which is often used on roadways to give travelers information about special events. Such signs warn of traffic congestion, accidents, incidents, roadwork zones, or speed limits on a specific highway segment. This technology is used in UK. They may also ask vehicles to take alternative routes, limit travel speed, warn of duration and location of the incidents or just inform of the traffic conditions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with reed that another motorway would be efficient, but there is not enough space to construct the motorway. Moreover, the existing motorway can no more be enlarged since it has already been enlarged using the road reserves.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, people prefer to travel in their own cars to go to work as most of them get milleage or travel grant. hence, this will create more and more traffic.
The idea of Arnaud is not bad either, but what will happen to the vehicles which will be deviated along another road, this will create a trffic jam elsewhere. I propose that more fly overs are constructed so as to reduce the traffic. Moreover, the fly overs could be like the motorway itself and hence this will minimise the traffic block.
ReplyDeletePAUSE...just think a world without street and no cars. How about staying at home and do the work. How buidlings can be intergrated to alleviate traffic problems?
ReplyDeleteI think the better solution was the Project Metro leger which would have :-
ReplyDeletea) encourage people to tavel by metro to reach their respective office / site of works
b)decrease congestion by less number of vehicles entering / going out of P-Louis
c)lessen of number of accidents occuring in the P-Louis region
d) the flow of vehicles would be more fluid
but alas the Government has decided otherwise by enlarging the motorway to 3 lanes on both sides by taking the central verge in its project of enlargement. Hence the project Metro leger cannot be undertaken.
I personally think that flyovers should be constructed from Q-Day Round about to Soreze in both ways linking to the new ring road so that vans / cars can travel more rapidly over the flyovers and heavy vehicles such as lorries, buses can travel below smoothly.
Moreover a bridge must be constructed from Free Port region to G.R.N.W enabling people to travel to the North or going to the B-Bassin / Pte Aux Sables regions more rapidly thus without passing through P-Louis
Every morning thousands of Litres of fuel must be burnt on the roads…most of it by idling vehicles on the way to different parts of the capital. Leaving aside the cost of environmental pollution – economic loss, resulting from the amount of fuel dissipated while idling and man-hours lost while waiting for the car in front to move is estimated to run into several million rupees annually. Transport is always been a problem in Mauritius. Entering and Leaving Port-Louis during the morning and evening peak periods is causing lot of traffic jam.
ReplyDeleteSpecific points where there traffic jam starts:
1. Starting from Helvetia, passing to Moka and Reduit, and then going to Port Louis or Quatre Borne.
2. The bell village near the Rajiv Gandhi centre, going toward the capital.
3. St John in Quatre Borne Town.
4. Ebene City
Solution:
1. Traffic management systems- Better management of traffic flow can reduce congestion and support an appropriate traffic speed, which reduces emissions.
2. Improve congestion at round-about and the roads.
3. Adding Single bus lane in the motor way.
4. Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) an express route “exclusively” for buses must be added from Curpipe to Port Louis, Quatre Borne, the North villages and south villages.
5. Light Rail Transport (LRT) system, an old project. In many ways LRT seems like the only practical long term solution to the country’s transport problems. Its implementation will however require strong will, far sightedness and a genuine concern for the future commuter. The LRT would be three times more expensive and would need 15,000 passengers per hour per direction to be a viable project.
6. Tunnel at le Pouce is a solution for direct transit to Port Louis.
7. An Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) scheme will concurrently be implemented to make drivers pay a toll for using scarce road capacity and thus discourage people from driving unnecessarily during peak hours
8. More By pass is needed for Quatre Borne .
(BHOWRUTH)
ReplyDeleteThe government/companies should introduce a system of "work at home"(e.g like the ftp site where we can upload our work). So, this would alleviate traffic congestion as we do not need to move. Also e-shopping should be make available everywhere.
Another aspect is that in Port-Louis, each people working for an enterprise/firms should have his/her own private parking( the company/firms need to provide the parking). So, people do not need to waste their time to look for a parking which in return will not create traffic congestion.
Moreover, the buildings should be equipped with a big lcd outside on which drivers can see different roads. Hence with this, traffic congestion will be reduce. Drivers will be able to take different route.
New buildings should now provide 2 level parking as facility.
Till now the Government has succeeded only in decentralising part of some Ministries but a lot has to be done so far. If only the Ministries could be shifted to different regions, i think the traffic problems in P-Louis would have been much lesser. We all know that many Public Servant Officers travel by their own cars because either they received mileage or duty free. At 4pm everyday, the flow of vehicles leaving P-Louis increases considerably like every morning mainly because of the vehicles run by the public officers. Thats why the Government has always authorizes early leaves to all public officers to leave their offices whenever the need had arisen, e.g when Hu Jin Tao had come to Mauritius and his convey had to pass through P-Louis by around 4 pm
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Bhowruth that every building constructed should have its own parking area. The hours loss sitting idle in their car / trapped in traffic jams by officers everyday is a loss of money & time. since time is equivalent to money, i think those officers can work at home via internet cos nowadays every thing are being done live such as :-
ReplyDeletea)an surgical operation being done in Mauritius can be assisted by foreign expert doctors live and thus enabling the operation to be successful
b)carrying out e-commerce
c)assisting / attending conferences
d)purchasing articles in Auction
e)visiting Car Galleries to buy or sell their vehicles
No need to go and visit the showroom which can be kms away from the purchaser
f)surfing on the net to acquire informations of a country / articles / accessories / etc
The Government also will soon launch e-procurement
(BHOWRUTH)
ReplyDeleteRoad humps also should be remove as this increase the level of traffic (e.g at palma). At each hump one need to stop and goes slowly. This creates traffic congestion also.
guys i'm trying in vain to post my comment but each time it is dissapearing!can somebody help me??hope this one is posted!!
ReplyDeletehopes "la bonne governance" prevails instead of setting out schemes over schemes ? however Sir, i do think before implementing such scheme, an urge change is indeed required in the habit, way, culture, attitude, mentality and behavior of dearest citizens life ,the same for our rulers and N.G.O 's! if this really happen sir, an eventual change in the painful daily traffic congestion encountering daily will be noted! why using one vehicle per one passenger whilst you can have same for five passengers having same destination (i.e) encouraging common means of vehicular schedule on roster basis on sector wise and this will be sustainable. Secondly we do have introduced bus lane but what about the public transport services that are being provided to us? i do think it really high time to introduce Metrobus this will encourage our dearest drivers to drop their car and venture for this comfortable type of vehicle and by contrast will reduce the traffic congestion as well as CO2 emission .Thirdly we have to introduce flexible time for both private and public sectors and also encourage E-shopping, banking and all connected with. Fourthly we will have to change Victoria Traffic center and "La Gare Du Nord" into two transit station and will need to lay emphasis in two modern traffic centers one at Soreze and the other one at Riche Terre then using navet to travel the passengers to their lieu of work and shopping areas.Restart harbor activity facilities at the Vieux Grand Port this will contribute to alleviate traffic congestion in Port Louis. Reintroduce again the South East high way project passing through ferney tunnel to Flacq.We will have to bring economic activities near the resident.
ReplyDeleteconcerning St jean to La Louise Sir we should use existing alternate links such as SRR Avenue and Cossingny Avenue for light vehicle transportation
oneway direction to La Louise and vice versa using Avenue Sir Guy Forget and Belle Rose direction to St Jean whilst for heavy vehicle will use St Jean Road. Secondly convert the existing the existing traffic centre and the tram way along Victoria Avenue in a parking zone.Thirdly shifting the actual Traffic Centre to Candos Stadium .Fourthly convert the actual market place into a recreational park. Construction of a new stadium at Bassin. Transfer of the actual market place to Bassin.
"Concerning how building can be integrated to alleviate traffic problems"
ReplyDeleteI think major enterprises could encompass their own villages where employers are at walking distance from their work. This can be beneficial in the long term since the company would not have mileage costs.
Students could stay over campuses itself.
A very high speed network is implemented for sharing of informations, resources, inputs outputs etc.. where everything is done electronically.
But yash what will happen if enterprises closed business what will to the vilages instead of this we should bring economic activities to existing villagers! what do u say
ReplyDeletehappen dear
ReplyDeleteLike here we are all working on a topic which is traffic congestion. Just imagine how much traffic have caused in doing this exercise. Perhaps IT traffic. In Built environment context, can each building be equipped with necessary infrastructure to cater for office at home and home office. What infrastructure should be developed to stop us from using conventional roads?
ReplyDeletesir my home will be my office while internet will be my source of communication, concerning the second issue i will suggest as i have said earlier bringing economic activities to the resident, no means of vehicles will be needed to reach out work, mode of transport will be by means of bicycle, motorcycle and even by foot which will at the same time alleviate traffic problems henceforth contribute in the economic growth of the locality as well as the welfare of the residents
ReplyDeletei do agree with u sir about IT traffic we encountered!But Sir may be for our actual building is not so equipped with necessary infrastructure to cater for office at home and home office. but for future building development we should included such facilities in the infrastructure such as office, reception, server corner all integrated in one space and also parking facilities to alter us from using conventional roads?
ReplyDeleteBEN later commented...
ReplyDeleteMy suggestion will be Dematerialising Transport
Port-Louis is the heart of economical transactions in Mauritius that why people travels from their place to go the Capital of Mauritius and creating at the same time traffic congestion. But what would it be if everybody stays at home and at the same time having their daily work activities. Here below is the definition of Dematerialising transport and ways how it shall reduce traffic congestion in Port-Louis.
Modern information technologies and communication networks allow for the transfer of large
amounts of data that previously had required individuals and/or companies to travel. This
“dematerialisation” of data and, consequently, of travel has the potential to lead to a reduction of both
private and business traffic. E-commerce services – services traded amongst companies or between
companies and their customers – are one area that has been singled out for its “dematerialisation”
potential.
Examples of private use of e-commerce include:
Online-banking: Electronic transactions via internet.
Tele-shopping, Online-shopping: Electronic shopping via Internet. This induces freight
traffic to deliver the goods . Usually, this freight traffic can be bundled and hence reduces
traffic in comparison to classic shopping. However, it does lead to a rise in urban freight
delivery that can have an impact on congestion levels.
Examples for business use of e-commerce.
Video conferences and video-presentations.
Tele-diagnosis and remote maintenance: used in IT and automobile industry.
The idea will be investing in the Dematerialising Transport practice, emphasizing on the facts that people may stay at home while performing their daily activities and eradicating their time consumption in traffic congestion.For my opinion this will be a very sustainable solution.
Dematerialising Transport practice seems an ideal solution to traffic congestion.However, people will travel anyway (i.e)for work,for pleasure or other personal reasons.People don't like to stay at home, they like to be in society.
ReplyDeleteMost towers under construction nowadays in Port Louis are catering only for Commercial and office spaces. What if government imposed that an equivalent space should be use for resident purposes.
ReplyDeletee.g for a building of 10000 Sq M, 2000 Sq M would be use for commercial purposes and 3000 Sq M for office purpose, remaining 5000 Sq m for residential purposes.
Such action will create more residential spaces in the City, therefore employees would be able to move in the city. Use of vehicles would be reduced and use of bycicles, motorcycles or foot could be encouraged.
And the fact that residences will be available in the same building as your office, some might just use the lift or stairs to go to work.
Such solution will not bring instantaneous result, however will benefit on the long run.
Why not imagine a building, encompassing a community in itself, having it's sueprmarket, shops, office, residential spaces, school. U'll take the lift or stair to go to work, shop etc...
How sustainable would that be, No more cars, not much time loss in travelling. More hours of natural lighting could be use, as one could get to work earlier. No noise pollution few vehicles on the roads. Who willl need to travel (except visiting parents).
It would be zoning in zoning... A village in a city.
Now of the building is eco-freindly, office space will be facing east (natural light during day). Rain water would be collected, and some wind turbines could be place on the towers to produce electricity.
A new vision for a modern country...
each and everyone take their car to go to port louis. one person one car. this increases the number of car. What if we don't let enter any car in port louis until it is not full.
ReplyDeleteThe fact of taking other people on the way coming to port louis may not be appreciate by everyone and thus they would rather take the bus to go to port louis. But before this, the quality of bus service should be improved,i.e, their timing, their quality, their age...etc..
We must come with the idea of buses with double-decker which can accommodate more passenger. And for this special lane for buses must provided to attain this idea.
Also, we may come with idea such as underground metro. it may be not sustainable but this will help to alleviate traffic congestion. People traveling over long distance would prefer to take the metro that would be rapid instead of going steady. This will save time for business.
It would be rather better to move some of the central companies else where,i.e, distribute all these companies over the country
I agree with Chinnayya that the buildings in Port Louis should have also resident purposes,but what if the government also imposes that each building under construction should have at least 1000 Sq m for a parking area. For e.g, instead of having a building with 5000 Sq m of resident, we could have a building with 4000 Sq m of resident and 1000Sq m for a parking area. Also, we can go through the idea of working at home i.e working online. people will not need to go to their place of work to do their jobs, like what is rogers doing. Rogers have a system of online booking and one does not need to go to Port Louis to have their tickets booked.
ReplyDeleteMoreover, I think that the important Ministries and the main services should move from Port Louis to other places. This will alleviate the traffic conjestion. For e.g, MCB is now constructing its own building at Ebene and no more activities would take place in Port Louis in the ancient tower.
Muneer, according to the building act, it's already established that for every new building, there is need to have at least 1 parking for each residential partment, and 1 visitors parking for every five resident parking. Excluding parking for each commercial spaces and commercial spaces. So the issue of parking have already been dealt with. I didn't mention it, considering we were all aware of it.
ReplyDeletesorry meant for every commercial and office spaces parking must be catered for etc...
ReplyDeleteSee building act schedule
About the idea of Dematerialising Transport is a good idea but then there would be a large number of influx of information that will be transfering from one place to another.
ReplyDeleteTherefor there will be an increase in the risk of being stolen.Hackers are more and more powerful nowadays.This may give rise to a network of system pyracy resulting in a loss of important information on frequent basis.The big companies would be the most likely target and thus this would cause them to lose a lot of money.
Anoteher problem is that the company would no longer have any physical contact with the employees.this may lead multiple fraud which will result in the downfall of the company.For instance, one of the employee of a particular company may accept money from a certain group of people from another company so as for him to mislead any transaction that he/she would be making.he sole intension would be to help his rival companies to prosper...
use of ferries would not be that practical as the bays in our country are so small. The sea routes are not well planned and the water level in most of the cases are not deep enough. if in mauritius the rivers were large and deep enough we could consider travelling on water through the rivers. that would have been more appropriate since it would have access all throughut the island. everywhere in the world we are constructing roads. why in mauritius instead of building new roads we dont exploit the rivers. make dams rise the level of water. this will enable travelling on water in mauritius. thus traffic would be divided in 2 sectors the land traffic and the water way traffic
ReplyDeleteDevesh, it's a good idea, however, rising the level of rivers would mean also increasing the size of the river, if we consider GRNW, the amount of houses on the bank of rivers or road passing next to the river, will be affected by the rise. Also the environmental impact of dams must be considered.
ReplyDeleteA world without street and cars would be of course sustainable. People are becoming more and more lazy day by day by the use of transport. Travelling 500m they are travelling by car. If a world without vehicles, that same person would rather walk or ride a bicycle to reach his destination. And of course,there will be a drastic decrease in Air pollution. Peple would keep fit. They shall be in constant movements and be of course in good health.
ReplyDelete@ Arnaud: sure people won;'t stop travelling but with good sensiblisation campaigns,Dematerialising transport may be considered very effective...
ReplyDeleteGuys traffic congestion occur mainly during peak hours but what if we can manage the time..
ReplyDeleteAn example will be suppose "X" amount of people come to P-louis to perform their daily activities which start at "9am" everyday and at "4pm" they all get stuck in the traffic.But if only half of "X" came to p-louis at 9am and the other half start their activities later in the afternoon,let say about 6pm, this shall reduced the traffic congestion during peak hours by half,is'nt it??
I do agree that you guys have many good points but personally I think that pheale is right when saying that port Louis is a bottle neck as all vehicles causing traffic congestion only pass by port Louis, those vehicles come from the north to go to the south and vice versa. This problem is not unique to port Louis, it do happen in many other towns. I also think that one of the big problem is the lack of alternative roads. The government seems to think that round about is the only way to shunt vehicles, but yet there are many other ways like auto pont at strategic points and good timing of traffic lights at others.
ReplyDeleteSo leave Port Louis Alone and try to think of a no city virtual business centre.Where is the traffic?
ReplyDeleteIn the case of a no city virtual business centre, we can use computer simulations to study the interactions between vehicles, drivers, and infrastructure (including highways, signage, and traffic control devices) in the region where the business centre is located, with the aim of understanding and developing an optimal road network with efficient movement of traffic and minimal traffic congestion problems.
ReplyDeletesir, obviously we will get rid of traffic congestion in our capital but i think it will generate a new type of traffic i.e we are shifting the traffic congestion from the capital to our respective locality , i mean it will be locality wise
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteyou are right arnaud it will eventually minimize traffic in our locality
ReplyDeleteTelework involves the use of telecommunications to substitute for physical travel. It includes telecommuting, employees with mobile work (e.g., sales staff or field workers who rely heavily on telecommunications), and people who are self-employed and able to work from a home office due to efficient communications. This gives people a way to avoid traveling under congested conditions.
ReplyDeleteSo, any job that does not need presence at the office, can use telecommunication. (It need/should not be everyday - maybe one or two days a week) which will go a long way to alleviate traffic congestion.
Alternative roads would be a good way to reduce traffic congestion on main roads but won't solve the problem of congestion in port louis itself. I think we should delocalise offices from the capital and regroup them in cities just like the cyber city in ebene where most of the BPOs and IT related companies have established themselves.
ReplyDeletewhy dont we go for a concept in which buildings built for office purposes could propose residential spaces in it itself... this way people working in this building could stay in the building itself... this would save time, energy and money on transportation as no transport would be needed:)... its just an idea, give me your opinions about it friends...
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ReplyDeleteYes I can agree with kovilen idea.. but the problem is that in Eben also there is traffic congestion.
We should have more "De TéLé Agent à Domicile"
Yes, I agree with you RASHED. This can be a good idea. Transportation not needed is equal to less traffic.
ReplyDeleteWith a no city virtual centre, congestion will shift from vehicles to services.
ReplyDeleteHave anyone ever tried calling the telecom services 150? I bet you have a minimum of 2-4 min waiting time before anyone pick up the phone. Same applies to governement services.
Besides virtual business park will also involve use of internet, and with the actual level of service, there's no way, internet service providers will be able to cater for such huge demands.
Nowadays with a 512kb/s model one rarely have transactions over 100kb/s. Now imagine the volume of information sharing you'll need with a no city business centre.
Will definitely require a few more opticle cables, and loads of investment.
However, developing such a city, would be detrimental to man. The percentage of overweight people have already reached detrimental proportions added to that the high consumption rate of junk food. Wonder whether such alternative won't shift congestion to the hospital???
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ReplyDeleteRashed what you are saying is that people should stop driving to work.
ReplyDeleteBecause building new roads or enlarging existing ones would only postpone the problem of traffic congestion.
I think that the government should start a campaign to encourage people to use public transport. sure bus lanes will help but we should also consider other public transports instead of using only buses.
The idea of dematerialising sound correct just to facilitate people and also reduce traffic congestion. But on the other hand it may be also a disadvantage as we know our country has the highest level of diabetes, heart deseases etc.. which is linked mainly our people are not so much adept of sports for good health.
ReplyDeleteI think that Mauritius being a small island by default and also of the growing population, traffic problems will persist not even in Port Louis, but other places such as Goodlands, Flacq, Triolet Quatre Bornes etc whereby the RDA had now constructed by pass road
Even if the ring road is under construction now (the Montebello, Pailles and tunnel… also the Terre Rouge-Verdun-Ebene-Valentina Road, its not necessary that traffic will alleviate, may befor the coming 2 to 3 years it will be ok but what will happen in 10 yrs.
I sincerely think that using of mass transit system will definitely be an advantage like light rails system and why not the fly over monorails following existing motorways and columns constructed in the central verge
Why can’t we adopt days for example on Sundays or public holidays whereby the main road say Q Bornes will be closed to traffic and reserved for pedestrian only.
Decentralisation of key economic activities out of P Louis
your idea about public transport is good but it is not suitable in a modern society. Transport as buses or vans release more emission resulting air pollution. cars are better. the system must be changed, it is simple. a good traffic management can bring a great change. The road structure must be upgrade. think better , just like the modern country which use fly overs with different levels. a straight way road without any round about just like Dubai, the journey from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, straight but without any stop. well, for a little Mauritius, development can be possible if new ideas are being proposed but bear in mind that each development must not have a negative impact on the environment, the population.
ReplyDeleteBillions of hours are wasted each year in traffic jams. Traffic jams not only impede our mobility, but they also pollute our air, waste fuel, and hamper economic growth. Traffic congestion is one of the most critical transportation issues facing us, and it is only predicted to get worse during the following years. There are, however, proven techniques and strategies that we can use today to help us get beyond gridlock tomorrow.. Many of these techniques and strategies require changes in individual travel behavior like :
ReplyDeleteDevelopment of a coordinated program. The specific structure of such a program depends, upon funding and the feasibility of implementing such actions in the local environment.
Managing the transportation system by adding new facilities or by making operational changes to improve system performance is the most common response to congestion problems. Actions such as the construction of new highways and transit facilities; the provision of improved traffic signalization schemes.
Telecommuting , instead of travelling long distance, people stay at home and work, hence increasing efficiency.
i agree with you arvy,but in fact we should have competent people in our local authorities and Ministries just see what is happening actually in Reduit with a wrong urban development approved by our authorities e.g location of M.B.C, Appollo Clinic, M.G.S.S.S with these structures wrongly situated we wont be able to lighten traffic problems.Politician interest always prevails in Mauritius instead of putting people first govt "slogan"
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ReplyDeletepheale you are right dear i think we have lack behind in telecommunication development in our island so virtual business park wont be sustainable as we will now encountering internet traffic jam..... so upgrading of the actual telecom network systems will be required to meet our users demand
ReplyDeletehere is actually what type of network M.T is proving us, setting the pace in the region in the transition from narrowband to broadband and IP (Internet Protocol) services. M.T is migrating its legacy network towards an IP based one. This network is being rolled out for high performance data, voice and multimedia services leading the way towards Broadband Mauritius and the transformation of the country into a cyber island as envisioned by Government and also offers global connectivity through the SAT3/WASC/SAFE undersea fibre optic cable and satellite systems. Mauritius to the EASSy (Eastern Africa Submarine System) cable, which will link the countries of East Africa and Madagascar between themselves and to the rest of the world and is also investing in the LION (Lower Indian Ocean Network) cable which has been put in service in the second semester of 2009. LION will connect the island to Reunion and Madagascar and will provide Mauritius with a second cable landing point, after the SAFE landing station at Baie Jacotet, hence allowing additional redundancy and route diversity. This investment together with those on the EASSy and the EIG (Europe-India Gateway) submarine cable systems will further increase the reliability, resiliency and the bandwidth capacity of our international connectivity.
ReplyDeletein fact as per the Hon.Mins Chidanbaram Pillay says on loacal radio recently these two above project EASSy and LION cable wont be completed till 2011........ or even more may perhaps 2012 2013, i dont know . so here laps of time counteract to transform the country into a cyber island as envisioned by Government.
ReplyDeletethis government has the project of decentralize the Capital. one the other hand is good as all the official building will be situated in the middle of the island with near infrastructure and new look and modern. this will be situated in the highland region but the main question is that what will happen to the old building in Port Louis? don't think it will change anything. The traffic population will be concentrated in the middle of the island! if it is a flop ideal image the traffic jam of St John , Quatre Borne and Reduit together and multiply it by 3. heard that it will be nature friendly , the road infrastructure will be suitable and less round about, add cycle lane just like in china.
ReplyDeleteI think you all have part of the solution to traffic congestion whether in port-Louis or elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteArvy-decentralising the capital and sending the official building in the middle of the island say in Highlands .
Vishal -pointing out that M.T. is changing to broadband which will increase data transfer and making Mauritius a cyber island linking it to other countries of the region.
Shyamal008 – saying that individuals should change their travel behaviours.
Yessoo- saying that main roads should be closed on Sundays and Public Holidays.
Kovilen- encouraging the use of public transport
Chinnaya- having all the solutions
Rashed- where offices can be accommodated to serve as residential spaces to avoid travel.
Technology6000- using telecommunications to transfer information rather than having to physically travel.
Just took a bus to port Louis.
ReplyDeleteLight Rail Transport (LRT) system together on the modified motorway. direct journey- Port Louis / curpipe and port louis /quatre borne.
e-shopping e-jobs e-education, people should be more and more encouraged to travel by bus.
ReplyDeletein Mauritius people dont bother to seek for alternative roads. sometime they dont even know the alternative routes. use of GPS might help a lot. a traffic jam sensors should be set up in areas of congestion(like germany). these traffic jam sensors should then be connected wirelessly to ur gps and gets updated live. so suppose u want to go to pamplemousses, ur gps which is connected to traffic jam sensor will tell u weather areas like pailles pheonix portlouis in conjested and indicate u the alternative route through st pierre la nicoliere.
ReplyDeleteTo promote working at home and avoid traffic congestion - highrise residential building should be constructed.
ReplyDeleteThe building should be dynamic, with internal steel and/or concrete skeletal structure as opposed to exterior concrete walls, glass walls, the ventilation ducts should be outside, large interior open space and easy access to all floors.
The elements of the building should be neatly composed so as to achieve optimal orderliness in order to logically solve the problem of the needs of the home office.
The building should also be intelligent where the control system is a computerised, intelligent network of electronic devices, designed to monitor and control the mechanical and lighting systems in the building.
The home office should have a building automation system which keeps the building climate within a specified range, providing lighting based on an occupancy schedule, and monitors system performance and device failures and provides email and/or text notifications to building engineering staff.
Dear all why not make use of all the ideas,making the most sustainable project which at the time resolve the problem of traffic congestion and time wasting,pollution etc..
ReplyDeletefirstly from the EUROPEAN CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS OF TREANSPORT, it has bee shown that ": Fully eradicating roadway congestion is neither an affordable, nor feasible goal in economically dynamic urban areas"
let just mixed up the alternatives to road congestions,here below is a little summary of some ideas that we have been elaborating:
1.Review of the Congestion Management Policy
2.Dematerialisation
3.New planning and coordination of road networks
$.New pricing policies (toll fee)
5.Improving Public Transport Facilities(new mean of transport
6.Imposing spaces for residential,commercial and offices etc..under the same roof in economical areas, "P.louis".
7.Implementing Mobility Management(bicycling,pedestrain travel etc...)
8.Modification of existing infrastructures( Expansion of roadwys in term of spaces etc..)
9.Time Management System (Peak hours)
10.Dynamic TDS(detectors in road network and traffic flow models to calculate traffic density)
11.Expansion of Public Transport Services (extending serving frequency over longer period of time)
12.Review of Transport Fee structures
13.construction of High Occupancy Vechiles(HOV) lanes.
14.Toll fee for HOV (person traveilling alone on HOV lanes shall pay fees)
there are many other alertanatives,all may be sustainable if the marginal costs to society of
congestion does not exceed the marginal costs of efforts to reduce congestion (such as adding to road or other
transport infrastructure3)!!!!
forget about the e-shopping arnaud! the main issue is the traffic, well, the subject you added is interesting but need to refer to transport problem in the island! well, can u tell me about the Toll fee, it is a bit confused. How will it work in the island
ReplyDeleteWhat about Ring Roads with toll systems implemented?
ReplyDeleteArnaud i agree with your comments that saying that we all have the solutions of the traffic problems, however i wish wish strongly to point out.
ReplyDelete1. For things to change, mentalality of people also need to be changed.
2.There should be the will power of a population/nation to accept changes and also to adapt their life as per their actual / futur environment.
Guys have you ever imagine in the future how roads will be. With the growing technology will cars still be on wheels, will we have roads, anyway for he time being lets take or study the example of Singapore.
ReplyDeleteAnother idea will be having:
ReplyDelete1. Heavy vehicles lanes only
2. Motorcycle lanes only
Together with ring road and toll fee systems, this will lessen the problem of traffic congestion.
What if we use a system of telepheric to transport people from one place to another,say from Reduit to Port Louis.The alighting platforms will then be situated just after Reduit where parkings facilities will be made available for car owners and also an adequate security.the other terminals will be at the foot of the montain, just at the entrance of Port Louis.
ReplyDeleteThen a system of tram will be made available for them to travel to their place of work.These tram will travel using the same system as the Ring road.the tram will eventually travel making a round of Port Louis.Also there will be a number of sub tram which will be traveling to and fro along the different streets of Port Louis.This service will be available for each main street situated in Port Louis.
This system will include a toll fee system where everyone is at gain.The people will no longer have to be blocked for hours in a traffic jam and as for the government,will receive an additional capital.
yes Yessoo, the idea use in Singapore to avoid traffic congestion is the better that would be preferable to be use in mauritius.
ReplyDeleteand i'm not sure the government would be able to finance these big project of fly-overs, underground metro, marina and others. it is not sustainable all this.
y don't we copy the ideas of singapore: its infrastructures, all of it- the high rise buildings, underground building, no round about, one way long and....all that.
please take a look of singapore
@Vishal: I agree with you with the fact that some structures are wrongly situated, but then we cannot just go over and destroy them. The road network has to be worked on all over again, and it will take decades before it becomes efficient.
ReplyDeleteWhat we can do, is to review the road network system, adding or cancelling out some components which can help out to reduce the traffic congestion.
Components such as new lanes (heavy vehicles & motorcycles - who are the causes of most accidents),
a few fly overs (though costly, but on the long run, we'll be the one gaining),
a toll system,
ring roads & less round-abouts.
I'll also add up that increasing use of public transport won't be that effective, people will still buy cars!
A partnership between the Public and Private Sector might result in a more effective result. Working alongside on a new road network, a new way of traveling...
Decentralization can be one of the solutions that can contribute to reduce traffic congestion in Mauritius. That is moving the population and industries from urban centers to outlying districts. In this way, people will be dispersing in alternate directions instead converging towards the city (Port Louis). Hence reducing the number of vehicles proceeding to the city.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sumaiya and Ghoorah, almost everything is costly nowadays but we should afford the price if we want to solve congestion on any part over the island. it would be constructions of some fly overs, ring roads,widening of some roads, bus lane. In fact the Government should have introduce the Toll System right now to analyse the impact it does on the traffic flow converging or going out of port-louis. Everyday people are buying vehicles, hence the no of vehicles is only increasing. We should foresee for long term development that would be sustainable.
ReplyDeleteAnother problem also is that there are too much round abouts in Mauritius.
A no city virtual business centre, would be a good initiative.
ReplyDeleteIt will help reduce traffic, since telecommunication will be much more involved.
Though it will require a huge investment to improve our communication system, the long term benefit of it and sustainability is worth the initial investment.
I agree with divya and sumaiya and i think that decentralization would be very cost effective and help saving time as well... i also think that we must reduce the amount of vehicles in Mauritius because the island is too small to afford such a huge number of vehicles. Moreover, introducing metros, flyovers and also why not underground metro?? this will save space above the ground which can be use for other purposes. But i don't think that building too many roads in Mauritius is a solution for that problem. Modifying existing roads will be a better solution.
ReplyDeletei think to create a no city virtual business centre there must be a very good communication system as all transactions will be done online but here there will connection problems as many people will be entering the page at the same time and this may create lots of problems, so in this case i can define this problem as traffic which can also be associated as internet traffic.
ReplyDeleteSandip, investing in telecommunication, is much more easy and sustainable, than investing in insfrastructures.
ReplyDeleteCost effectiveness of NCVBC is much better than investing in metros, flyovers.
Though I would rather suggest a combination of all suggested proposal, base on an efficient economic and mathematical model, and implementing most of the strategies mentioned, but to a certain extent such as to achieve the best result with minimum investment. Also most sustainable strategies over the coming decades.
I think that the idea of the Cyber city is to provide with service on the net or other means of communication. Someone has ever been at the cyber city at Ebene?? If no, there are such a huge no of vehicles that even the commercial centre I think is enlarging its parking areas. The Cyber City which to my opinion is the logical place where businesses could be conducted virtually is overcrowded. My question is : Is Mauritian employers' as well as employees ready for virtual business centres?? Theses types of businesses will certainly reduce or alleviate completely traffic congestion! But as my Mr Chinnayya said previously, with the type of communication provided in mauritius, won't there be communication congestion instead???
ReplyDeleteThe solution to implement virtual services will be to modernize the communication facilities, provide appropriate training to potential employees and more important, persuade employers who can provide this type of services to invest in it. Convince them that with an employee working from his house will be more benefical to him as the company won't have to cope with transport allowances, casual or sick leave etc...
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ReplyDeletealternative roads wii alleviate traffic congestion from motorway and main road.
ReplyDeletewide use of telecommunication around the island will be an important factor reducing traffic.
introducing roads for cycling only.
decentralization from port louis throughout corners of the island.
Traffic congestions can be minimized by upgrading overhead freeways and infrastructures like ring roads instead of round about.
chinnayya i've talked on two different aspects and your are mixing them up. i am not against communication... let me make it clear that the flyovers and so on was about congestion in Port-Louis and the other one was on the virtual topic. The question was that where is the traffic is a case of no city virtual system? so i've answer it. Well i totally agree with your telecommunication plan which is very sustainable also. Answering to Clency's question i fink with advancement in technology mauritians are ready for that but they are must be provided with training
ReplyDeleteYou know what there's this magic world "sustainability" which appears here and there in our comments. Our government created a Ministry for sustainable development but tell me what is done to achieve sustainability? for ex. like Vishal said is the development been done at reduit sustainable. I've heard that there's fund in the Maurice Ile Durable project, why don't the government use this fundings in training or in improving internet facilities in our island thus providing companies, school or even the UOM with better connection thus encouraging the concept of E-learning or E-businesses. At bagatelle there is the construction of the Mall of Mauritius, instead of this kind of development which decreases our agricultural land and natural resources (again sustainable development is not to my opinion reached), the resources for this construction could have been used for E-commerce for example. The greatest shopping mall in the world is if i am not wrong E-bay why not in Mauritius? Or as Sandip said to provide not only training but information on the benefits of E-whatever you think like E-Learning, E-schooling, E-Commerce and even E-dating...
ReplyDeletefinally what we can conclude is that all depends on the government. Bringing so many ideas forwarded will not bring any fruit until there are people initiating it. To make all these E stuffs realize, the government must first of all make internet access free. This is a major step to bring this project forward. Mauritians are ready for all but they must be given the knowledge and importance of sustainability because i think even though they have come with this plan they don't know the real meaning of sustainability. I agree with Clency but as we say everything has a good and bad side. I mean that if we concentrate too much on E aspects then this will create a problem on social and aspects which later may create lots of problems. So i think there must be a balance basing on our social aspects and daily problems like traffic congestion and so on. The idea of E-shopping is nice because if we do a survey there are too many shopping complexes which are being built in Mauritius for e.g. at Belle Mare, Riviere Du Rempart, Bagatelle as mentioned by Clency. These land can be use for better purposes.
ReplyDeleteIntroducing Flexitime will also help to reduce traffic congestion. This will encourage people to work according to their paste by hte use of the time clock,i.e someone working according to his card,taking the time interval.In this way people will be traveling at different hours and hence there will be less traffic jam.
ReplyDeleteMoreovr by updating 1.nicoliere road
2. Ml Longue Road
will help people to use alternate roads to go to the south rather than passing via Port Louis.
Heavy vehicles like roof slabbing lorries,heavy containers lorry etc
Well done guys. We shall close this chapter on congestion as it is already congested with your comments. See you on Saturday. DTS
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