The court irked with the fact that the government has not dealt with the problem seriously has asked them to file an affidavit stating the measures to avoid the clogging up of the island city within four weeks.
Government pleader S K Nair told the court that expert consultants have been appointed to study the situation following which the court sought that report along with the affidavit.
Petitioner BEAG too said that they wanted a copy of the report before the next hearing.
Last week, Justice JN Patel and Justice K K Tated asked the state government whether it could ensure the voluntary compliance of the TRS. Nair, however, said that the state government can regulate the flow of traffic under the four walls of the statute but the voluntary compliance can be ensured by an NGO.
Nair added that the state government had the Mumbai Urban Infrastructure Project (MUIP) and the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) and the Mumbai Metro Project were in the pipeline and would go a long way in easing the traffic woes of the city.
Today also the state pointed out projects like widening of the Eastern Express Highway, elevated corridor from the airport and sea-links will help reduce the congestion. The court, however, expressed dissatisfaction over the state governments affidavit. The judges annoyed with the government passing the buck has now directed the state to indicate what measures they will take and to also set out a proper time frame within a reasonable period of time. The state also submitted that the Railways have not been made a party in the case as their submission should also be sought.
The court, however, said that the state should not have any problems in coordinating with the railways and other government agencies.
BEAG had filed PIL seeking the implementation of the TRS in 2003. Counsel for BEAG Shiraz Rustomji submitted that not one of things mentioned by the government like the MUIP, MUTP and Mumbai Metro Project, had anything to do with private vehicles. Rustomji had earlier argued that cities around the world have seen a marked difference after implementing TRS in both reducing traffic congestion and combating pollution levels.
BEAG in its PIL pressed for the implementation of the scheme first proposed by a committee headed by former transport commissioner V M Lal. The committee had come up with 100 ways to reduce Mumbais vehicular pollution, one of which was the TRS.