The ?poor? to pay? you gotta be kidding!

HAS anybody asked or told the foreign consultant why traffic problems have increased horrendously in the last few months? Does anybody care or are they only concerned that it is now just taking longer to get to work and, therefore, wrongly blame it on the increase in the number of one-person cars on the road.

OK! The increase may be true but, in my humble opinion, it is because the public sector is finally being made to come to work on time, as they should have all these years! Now, because of them, the poor people who work in the private sector will have to pay, especially if congestion pricing is introduced in Mauritius. As it is, we are not entitled to duty-free cars, we are not paid petrol allowance and we don?t get free parking facilities. Now we will have to pay to use our cars, which are a necessity, considering the alternative we have in the form of public transport! What a joke!

Of all people, those who work in the public sector are those who should car pool. They can all start work at the same time and finish at the same time. Whereas for us in the private sector, time does not mean anything ? the work must be done before you go home! Or if not, finish it at home so that when you come the next day, it is finished!

Cheaper alternatives

Not all those who work in the private sector earn big salaries ? only our bosses do. We, other mere peasants, have to work at least twice as hard as our public sector counterparts; we are not entitled to cash in our sick leave if we do not use it; we do not get casual leave in addition to vacation leave and we do not get passage credit.

So, before introducing congestion pricing or even the light railway, please consider cheaper alternatives to encourage car users to realistically consider switching to public transport. For example, increase the number and frequency of comfortable express bus services from all over the island to Port Louis, something similar to the NTC Blue Line which uses big shopping centre car parks and couple the above with minibuses on several different circular routes around Port Louis, which charge a reasonable flat fee (subsidized from parking payments in Port-Louis) and start from as early as 07.30 to as late as 18.00 so that office workers, especially ladies, do not have to walk a long distance from the bus station to their place of work. For example, some work as far as Champ-de-Mars; decentralize government office services out of Port Louis. Why is the ministry of Agriculture based in Port Louis instead of Réduit when the ministry of Education can move to Phoenix ?

Finally, since we are trying to be a Cyber island, make better use of e-government capabilites, i.e., do not just make scanned forms available on-line, but enable users to submit these forms and query officers electronically. It is not enough just to automate present procedures but it is necessary to conduct a business process re-engineering exercise to determine how to do business with ministries more effectively.

A poor private sector employee

Remove ?excess? offices and schools

FOR the past two weeks, I have been reading about the problem of traffic jams in Port Louis in the newspapers. The government is trying in vain to have a solution for this problem. Why are they not finding the right solution? In l?express dated 1st April 2004, there was an article where it is said that the measures to be taken in the long run are Options Miracle. The short-term measures are to increase parking fees and pay a bus fare from Coromandel and so on. Why should the population pay for that? We are already paying taxes (direct and indirect), so why should we pay again? Where is our taxation money going? If the short-term measures are taken, this will be replicated even on passengers travelling by public transport because transport costs will definitely increase. The government says that it is working for the welfare of the population. Do making us pay and increasing the cost of living mean welfare?

Quieter locations for schools

However, I suggest a solution to this traffic problem. I propose that some offices and institutions should be removed from Port Louis and placed in suitable remote areas. Some examples of such institutions could be schools and colleges. Why are there so many schools and colleges in Port Louis? I have read in an international magazine that schools should be built in quiet places where students will be able to concentrate more and bring better results.

Do you think that Port Louis is one of such places? There are about 20 colleges and schools in Port-Louis, there could be 15 teachers in each of these institutions who travel by their own car to come to work. This makes 300 cars entering Port-Louis each morning and going out each afternoon. If these institutions are removed from Port-Louis and put in a remote area, don?t you think that this will mean 300 fewer cars in Port Louis everyday? This measure will also reduce the overcrowded population of Port Louis as students of these institutions will not be coming there unnecessarily.

Moreover, what is the use of the Supreme Court in Port-Louis? If only it was removed from Port Louis, all the lawyers, solicitors and all those affiliated with the Court and legal matters would move out of Port Louis to settle in the vicinity of the Supreme Court. Now count the number of people associated with the court and legal matters who have their offices in Port Louis. The people whose cases are to be heard and the people who come to assist cases will also not have to come to Port-Louis.

Furthermore, what is the use of Line Barracks in Port-Louis ? Just because driving tests are done there, so many driving schools have set up shop there. Just go and watch near the Casernes how many ?auto-école? learners are causing traffic jams. Do you think that Port-Louis is the right place to pass driving license tests and to learn to drive?

Mismanagement

Apart from these there are many other such institutions that are responsible for the problems that we are facing in Port-Louis. If Mauritius is losing billions of rupees annually it is because of this mismanagement. In Port Louis, there should only be head offices and offices that are linked to the port, airport, etc. The other unimportant offices should have been removed earlier. However, it is not too late, the government can still take the right measures to solve the problem. I hope that my suggestions will help the government in their battle to solve traffic jams in Port Louis.

K.S.R. Student of UoM, BSc Finance

Transform Champ-de-Mars into a giant car park

Traffic in the capital is in chaos; cars are moving at a snail?s pace. Let us try and find the cause for that state of affairs and help to alleviate the situation. The main streets can be divided into three lanes, one central and two others adjoining the pavement. Cars at present are allowed to park on the two side lanes and to drive along the central one. As there are no more than a few inches between the central and the lateral lanes, cars can only be driven at a slow speed to avoid collision with the stationary ones.

So, to speed up the traffic, cars should be allowed to park on one side of the road only, the left one. That will allow traffic to speed, resulting in alleviation of the congestion.

The racecourse could be converted into a vast car park coupled with a very frequent return bus service between the racecourse and Place d?Armes and a second one between the racecourse and Plaine-Verte could be set up. That system will cause very little inconvenience and no big change in administration, only the posting of a few traffic policemen at Champ-de-Mars to guide cars towards the parking spaces. I hope the municipal authorities will try and put this simple suggestion into operation for some time before embarking into more complicated ones recommended by EXPERTS.

M.S.S.

A simple old citizen

Du Nord au Sud via Crève-Coeur

Nous savons tous qu?il y a un grand nombre de véhicules qui n?ont rien à faire à Port-Louis mais qui sont obligés de traverser la capitale pour rallier le Nord du Sud à toute heure de la journée. Combien de cars de touristes font le trajet Plaisance-Nord et retour tous les jours ? Que viennent-ils faire à Port-Louis ? Même pour le transport public, il aurait pu y avoir des bus reliant le Nord du Sud sans ce stress du transit Gare Victoria-Gare du Nord et vice versa.

Pourquoi ne pas donner la priorité à la construction d?une nouvelle route qui relierait Montagne-Longue à Highlands, en passant par Crève-Coeur, Moka, etc. à travers les champs de cannes ? Je ne suis pas contre la route qui va être mise en chantier très prochainement entre Plaine-Magnien et GRSE pour les touristes de l?Est, mais je considère que la priorité devrait être donnée à Port-Louis. Pour l?économie du pays, nous devons libérer la capitale au plus vite de ce trafic qui ne demande qu?à passer ailleurs.

Evidemment ce projet risque d?être plus coûteux que les mesures que doivent prendre les autorités prochainement. Le péage fera gagner des sous au GM mais le problème persistera. Mais pourquoi ne pas rêver et pourquoi ne pas dire tout haut ce qu?on pense ? Peut-être que les autorités n?ont pas encore pensé à Crève-C?ur et Highlands ?

Cyril V. Mamet