Noida: For commuters returning home late from work, the stretch below Sector 51 metro station has become a daily test of patience — and, after 11pm, a safety concern. Restaurants continue to draw customers, but parking spills onto the service lane and main road while the metro station’s footbridge and parking facility are shut for the night.Two weeks ago, a Sector 77 resident, Sumit Dubey, stopped at one of the restaurants below the station while returning from work. With the restaurant’s designated parking full, he parked at the NMRC facility across the road. When he returned, however, the parking had closed for the night. “I was just five minutes late and was charged a Rs 300 penalty,” he said.For residents and daily commuters, parking is only one part of the problem. The restaurant cluster, they said, adds to congestion on an already crowded stretch.“There is not a day when we are not stuck in traffic for 10 to 15 minutes,” said Brajesh Sharma, a Sector 78 resident who works at Khel Gaon and travels through the stretch every day. He said restaurant customers frequently park along the service lane and, when that fills up, vehicles spill onto the main road. Others stop to pick up or drop off passengers, further slowing traffic. “The service lane is parked, the main road is full. Where will commuters move?” he asked.Nisha Rai, another Sector 77 resident, described the stretch as a “mall road”, with restaurants, a CNG station, e-rickshaws, autos and private vehicles competing for limited space.Residents said the problem becomes more pronounced after 11pm, when the metro station closes and the foot overbridge can no longer be used. Pedestrians heading to the parking facility across the road are then forced to cross the busy stretch. “Even if you get dropped here in a cab after 11pm, we have to cross the carriageway because the foot overbridge is closed. You have to be careful that you don’t get hit,” she said.A group of residents has now written to the NMRC, Noida Authority and traffic police, alleging that restaurants operating from spaces leased by NMRC below the station are contributing to congestion. They said the combination of restaurant traffic, roadside parking, the CNG station and public transport vehicles has turned the stretch into a daily bottleneck.An NMRC official said the parking spaces and the cafes were laid out after the plan had been approved. “The footbridge comes under the Noida Authority and we can request them to look into it,” said the official.
