Traffic jams in and around Colombo are not just driving people insane with frustration; its costing the country a thumping Rs 20 bn a year.
ldblquote The congestion cost in Sri Lanka is around Rs 20 bn a year and this is just a conservative estimate, dblquote Professor Amal Kumarage from the National Transport Commission (NTC) told Lanka Business Online.rn
rnInternational standards define speeds below 30 miles per hour as congestion and looking at lost time, fuel, vehicle wear and tear, and wages the cost of congestion is arrived at.rn
rnldblquote Most of the national congestion cost, around 80 percent, is within a 15 km radius of Colombo city, dblquote said Kumarage.rn
rnThe NTC points to the rapidly swelling fleet of private vehicles coupled with the snails pace road expansion, as the immediate cause of growing roadblocks.rn
rnldblquote The number of vehicles on the roads increased by around 25 percent over the last two years but the road network didnt expand even by three percent, dblquote