The decision to ban all motor vehicles, other than those run on batteries, from the inner and middle circles of Connaught Place from February is a bold experiment. The plan is to review the experiment after three months. As was only to be expected, some sections of the public have opposed it while others have welcomed it. The government says that parking areas around the place are under-utilised and they can meet the needs of those who used to park their vehicles in Connaught Place. The shopkeepers, including restaurant owners, fear that once vehicles are not allowed inside the area, there will be lesser footfall in their premises. Some fear that Connaught Place will become a ghost area.
It is too early to make such predictions. True, there will be increase in the traffic on the place’s outer circle. There will also be lesser business in the area at least during the initial weeks. Nonetheless, it is an experiment that needs to be made. Connaught Place enjoys a special position in the life of many Delhiites. It is there that many of them would have made memorable purchases from a suit to a car or met their life partner for the first time. The pedestrianisation of the area will make it a happening place for the people. Of course, the fear of hawkers taking over the area vacated by parked cars is too real to be scoffed at.
The pedestrianisation of a similarly iconic area in New York showed that the fears that it would adversely affect business were misplaced. For all one knows, the new arrangement might encourage more people to visit the area and spend longer time there. The young and the old might even enjoy the freedom of walking carefree, enjoying the facilities available there. The Metro has a very large station right in the heart of Connaught Place . If the experiment succeeds, other markets in the city can also be declared vehicle-free. For that parking facilities in adjoining areas need to be improved. Other cities might also follow suit.