The illegal parking of private school buses around Swarna Jayanti Park has become a cause for concern for Indirapuram residents. They allege this is being done in connivance with a few officials of Ghaziabad Development Authority.
There are three big residential societies around the park, including ATS Advantage & ATS Haciendas. A resident, on condition of anonymity, told City Spidey that the parking near Gate No 4 of the park has been illegally occupied by school buses for months. “Eight to ten buses are seen parked here every day around 4 pm. The buses leave only in the early-morning hours,” the resident added.
Residents further say the bus staff create a ruckus in the area. The situation gets especially bad in the evenings when the drivers, conductors and cleaners are in an inebriated state. Residents say the buses also lead to traffic jams.
Priya Kanwar, a commuter who recently started driving, said the area where the buses are parked becomes a bottleneck. "The situation makes me nervous, as those behind my car start honking. I always try to avoid this road because of the buses," she added.
Ritesh Sharma, another commuter, said he found it difficult to take a U-turn in this area. "I have a Fortuner and I need to take a wide U-turn. But this becomes next to impossible because of the buses. The road is already narrow and the buses make it even more congested," he added.
Residents say they have written to the top officials of the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) about this but their pleas have fallen on deaf ears.
SP Sisodia, chief horticulture officer of GDA, told City Spidey that there was no official order that buses could be parked there. "We will take action soon," he added.
