Wheels, Wings, and Wishes
Tujala Jonchhe, DNPPF 2023
When I was 16, I wanted wings to fly.
For the past 10 years, I had spent three hours daily on weekdays commuting from my home in Bhaktapur to my school in Lalitpur. Looking back, I have had fun times during those three hours of my day with peers and seniors. From requesting Driver dai to play the music out loud to occasionally sneaking in junk food to having our version of bus parties. While we had created our world inside the bus, the outside world was an obstruction for us. A 30-minute bus ride would take double the time in the morning, making us get up at the crack of dawn. It was worse in the evening longer time on the bus wore us out before we got back home to do our homework.
Over the years many reasons caused traffic congestion. When I was in first grade, it was the smaller roads in Bhaktapur that were yet to be expanded. The highway expansion project finally began when I was in grade five extending our time on the school bus. We were told the project would be completed in a few months making our commute hassle-free. Even though it took more than a few months, eventually the highway was expanded by six lanes which made our commute time shorter and gave us extra minutes to sleep in. After finishing grade 10, I had to move on from the world I had created on the school bus with my buddies to the public bus with strangers.
Right after SLC, my cousin who is the same age as me was gifted a motor scooter. I could see him using his key of independence to get anywhere he wanted on time without being suffocated by a sea of people or waves of pungent body odor. As my 16th birthday was drawing closer, I was anticipating getting my wings (well in this case a two-wheeler) as well. The thought of wanting wings to be attached to me did not arise from jealousy that my cousin had one. But my dire want to fly away. I wished to fly away from those cramped buses and congested roads.
More than half a decade has passed since then; however, the buses and roads remain the same. During rush hour, there is heavy traffic due to the growing number of private vehicles on the road. At the same time, public vehicles are still overcrowded. Commuting via public transport in Kathmandu Valley is a distress in itself. You are lucky to get a seat when people are jostling for a few inches to stand. On top of that the buses always halt at certain stops for an extended time.
Why have we been unable to increase our supply if the demand for public transportation has not been met? Why is public transport not managed properly here? Why are residents of Kathmandu compelled to own cars or bikes? Those cars and bikes are one of the main contributors to air pollution. Now, what I wish for is free roads. Roads, free of obstruction and frustration. I hope to see no reckless drivers rushing to their destination or hear needless honking from impatient people who tolerated hours in gridlock. I wish for a future with a better transportation system that makes commuting a breeze.