The city of Colombo
attracts about 1.5 Mn. floating population on an any working day and with the
addition of the resident population in the city, the total population in the city
increases to more than 2 Mn. during the daytime. It is estimated that about 50%
of the commuting population arrives in the city for employment or to engage in
commercial activities and or to attend educational institutions. The rest comes
to the city for various other purposes.
Commuting
population uses various forms of transportation to enter the city. According to
estimates about 27,215 buses, operated both by private and public sectors, transport
958,000 passengers daily to the city. Another 560,132 use about 243,459 private
vehicles. The number of commuters who use the railway is estimated to be around
165,000.
Both the number of vehicles
and the commuters entering the City are increasing year by year. At the same time
the residential population and the ownership of vehicles within the city limits
will also experience an unprecedented growth. Vehicles that enter the City from
9 entry points on working days have been estimated to be around 275,000, and this
is in addition to the contribution to the traffic floor by the use of vehicles
of the residents in the city.
Traffic
problem has been aggravated by the concentration of all forms economic, commercial
and administrative functions in the city. Furthermore, Colombo is the largest
city in the country and, therefore, it attracts people because of its commercial
and political significance and because it offers better facilities in health,
education etc. than any other city in the country. The combination of all these
aspects results in a greater attraction of the city for people from the rest of
the country thus aggravating the transport problem in the city of Colombo.
Transport
problem that currently experienced by the city of Colombo is reflected in the
increasing traffic congestion. A few years ago, the traffic congestion was largely
limited to the CBD, but now it has spread to the entire core area lasting sometimes
most of the peak period. The number of vehicles in the city is not the only factor
that contributes to congestion. Shortage of parking areas, inadequate facilities
for pedestrians, parking of heavy vehicles on busy highways during normal working
hours and poor public transport facilities are also equally significant contributors
to the congestion problem. As a consequence the average vehicle speed has reduced
to around 10 kilometres per hour within most parts of the city during the day.
The main implication of traffic congestion, is that it , causes higher running
costs to the owners of vehicles and results in a considerable loss to the national
economy. This problem is likely to exacerbate in the immediate future since the
road networks are severely inadequate to meet even the current demand Given the
projected growth in the demand for transport facilities in the coming decade,
upgrading, modernising and expanding the transport sector must receive urgent
priority.
