Nearly a decade and a half after the ambitious plan to transform the Margao Bus Stand into an ultra-modern bus terminus, the initiative has now reportedly been revived by floating a fresh tender. Margao is in dire need of a state-of-the-art transport hub which will serve the commuting people of Salcete and South Goa at large. It is learnt that the government has reportedly proposed to allocate prime land to a private player under PPP mode to set up shopping malls and hotels in lieu of building the bus-terminal and in the process may have compromised the bus-stand infrastructure. Having shopping malls near bus-terminals can have several disadvantages. Malls generate significant traffic, and when combined with a bus stand, this can lead to severe congestion and gridlock, slowing down both bus services and general traffic flow. The presence of a large shopping mall can negatively impact small, independent businesses in the area, potentially leading to their decline or closure. Shopping malls require vast amounts of space, often leading to the destruction of natural habitats and the replacement of open areas with concrete and parking lots.
