HYDERABAD: What better way to utilise the spaces that make up a traffic island than make it a people-friendly seating space?
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is ushering in the concept of Urban Seating at important traffic islands in the city by turning the space into meaningful urban seating spaces.
Two such large traffic islands –– at the busy Cyber Towers and Shilparamam junctions –– are already a hit with people who are utilising the urban seating facility with much enthusiasm. A visit to these traffic islands makes it clear that much thought has gone behind the initiative and the effort to strike a balance between aesthetics and utility is quite evident.
The civic body has provided four umbrella-shaped shelters in these traffic islands where people can take shelter from the weather. The seats are designed for visitors like techies to sit for group interactions. Apart from group seating, the civic body has provided individual seating created artistically to help pedestrians relax and enjoy the ambiance. Spots like that of a man sitting on a bench with a suitcase are attractive enough for people to take selfies.
GHMC officials told TNIE that a lot of tourists and visitors to Shilparamam have no place to sit outside the art village. They said that after observing that a large number of techies gather there, the concept of urban seating took shape.
‘’We have utilised the island space and created urban seating space for people to spend time. Also, pedestrians can use these islands to wait till the traffic halts and then cross the road,” a GHMC official said . GHMC officials confirmed that they plan to introduce the urban seating concept to other large traffic islands in the city.