ALAVERDI MAYOR DERIVES BENEFIT FROM STREET CONGESTION
Larisa Paremuzyan

2009/08/20 | 16:56

Marzes

No parking signs have appeared on Tumanyan Street, a major thoroughfare
in the town of Alaverdi next to a building that belongs to the "Kata"
store chain. It would appear that Alaverdi drivers see the signs as
more of a joke than a concerted effort by municipal authorities to
ease congestion on that particular stretch of road.

Alaverdi drivers see the recent move by the municipality as just
another way for local police to "ticket" drivers and then split the
ill-gotten gains with town officials. This is the story we were told
by many local drivers who understandably wished to remain anonymous.

In reality this stretch of road is the most congested in Alaverdi
and is used by buses and vans as a transport route from Yerevan to
Tbilisi. The site in question is used as a paid parking lot for
buses and minivans plying the route and the morning and evening
congestion becomes a real safety hazard since it is so close to the
road itself. Many community residents have complained in the past
regarding the unsafe conditions.

However, the move by the Alaverdi Municipality to place no-parking
signs in the area is a sham response to residents’ concerns. A real
solution to the congestion is for the municipality to move the paid
inter-city bus and minivan stations to another location.

This however would not be to the liking of Alaverdi Mayor Artur
Nalbandyan, the majority owner of the "Kata" store chain since
passengers from outlying communities make purchases at his store
while waiting for transport to take them back home.