CHOGM 2013 Traffic Plan For Colombo (With Map).

The dreaded CHOGM is almost upon us. Every two years this meeting of heads of state and their entourages snarls traffic in some host country, and this year its us. What we’ve done is taken this text traffic plan (thanks SueKiri) and drawn it on a map and written it out in a table. The parts marked dark red are officially going to be closed or blocked at random times. The parts in light red are connecting roads we assume will be bad as well.

GIF For Friday November 15th

On Friday, the VIPs will go to Nelum Pokuna, making Town Hall inaccessible for the rest of Colombo.

Executive Summary

Stay in your home or leave Colombo.

Dates Days Disasters
12th-14th Tue-Thur Avoid anything between airports and hotels.
Airports means Katunayake and Ratmalana.
13th-14th Wed-Thur Avoid BMICH
15th Friday Avoid Nelum Pokuna (Town Hall) and BMICH
16th Saturday Avoid Waters Edge and BMICH
17th Sunday Avoid BMICH

Full Detail

We’ve translated this directly from the Police press release. Please excuse small typos and spelling differences. This is the somewhat exact closure times and what roads/junctions will be closed.

INDEX PLACES OF CLOSURE 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov
1 Slave Island Police Roundabout 08.45-09.45 07.00-08.00 07.00-08.00
2 Road Near Regal Cinema 08.45-09.45 07.00-08.00 07.00-08.00
3 D. R Wijewardhana, Gamini Roundabout will be closed for vehicles coming from Pettah 08.45-09.45 07.00-08.00 07.00-08.00
4 C.T.C. Junction 08.45-09.45 07.00-08.00 07.00-08.00
5 York Street, Chatham Street Junction 08.45-09.45 07.00-08.00 07.00-08.00
6 All vehicles that enter Galle Road between Old Parliament roundabout to Kollupitiya Junction 08.45-09.45 07.00-08.00 07.00-08.00
7 Elephant House Roundabout 08.45-09.45 07.00-08.00 07.00-08.00
8 Old J. O. C. Cambridge Junction 08.00-12.00
9 From Liberty Junction to Duplication Road Junction 08.45-09.45
10 Both sides of Flower Road, Ananda Cumaraswamy Road 08.00-12.00
11 Both sides of Pittala Junction, Flower Road 08.00-10.30 07.00-08.00 07.30-08.30
12 Hunupitiya Cross Road can exit to Dharmapala Mawatha 08.00-10.00 07.00-08.00 07.30-08.30
13 Park Street Dharmapala Mawatha Junction (residents only) 08.00-10.00 07.00-08.00 07.30-08.30
14 Lipton Circus – Only buses, residents and invitees can enter 08.00-12.00
15 Soyza roundabout – Only residents, invitees and mosque-goers can enter 08.00-12.00
16 Thummulla, Thurstan Road, 175/177 buses should go through Thummulla Road, Rajakeeya Mawatha, Reid Mawatha, Stanley Wijesundara Mawatha 08.30-10.15
17 Both sides of Colonel Jayawardene Mawatha, Dharmapala Mawatha, Ananda Cumaraswamy Mawatha 08.45-10.00 07.00-8.00 07.30-08.30
18 Reid Mawatha (Philip Gunawardene Mawatha), Rajakeeya Junction 08.00-12.00
19 Vidya, Wijerama Junction (residents and employees of the institutes only) 08.00-12.00
20 Gregory, Wijerama Junction (Residents and employees of the institutes only) 08.00-12.00
21 Baudhdhaloka Mawatha, Thunmulla (Stanmore Crescent Junction)
22 Bullers, Jawaththa Road Junction, Consistent Road, Bullers Lane (Residents and employees of the institutes only) 11.00-12.00
23 Bullers, Torrington Junction (Residents only) 10.00-12.00 11.00-12.00 11.00-12.00
24 Bullers, Longdon, Longdon Place Junction, Opposite SLBC (Residents and employees of the institutes only) 10.00-12.00
25 Sarana Road, Malalasekara Mawatha Junction, Entering Bullers Road 10.00-12.00
26 Bullers Road, Gregory Road Junction 11.00-12.00
27 Cemetery roundabout (Residents only) 11.00-12.00
28 De Saram Mawatha, Barnes Place 09.00-09.45
29 Kynsey Rd, Rosemead Place Junction, De Saram Road, Rosmead Place Junction 14th till Prince Charles departs
30 Wijerama Road, Ward Place and Horton Place 09.00-09.45
31 Poldoowa, Subhuthi Pura Junction 07.45-09.00 08.00-09.00
32 Sethsiripaya, Subhuthi Pura Junction (Entrance only for residents and  those who go to the function) 07.45-09.00 08.00-09.00
33 Baththaramulla Junction (Entrance only for those who go to the function and those who work in institutes.) 07.45-09.00 08.00-09.00
34 Near the Speaker’s residence 07.45-09.00 08.00-09.00
35 U. L. Gunasekara Mawatha 07.45-09.00 08.00-09.00
36 Cooray Mawatha 07.45-09.00 08.00-09.00
37 Welikada Cross Road 07.45-09.00 08.00-09.00
38 Cotta Road, Ayurveda Hospital Junction 07.30-09.00 08.00-09.00
39 Both sides of Model Farm Junction, Time to time you can enter from Old Bullers Road to Cotta Road 07.30-09.00 08.00-09.00
40 Cemetery roundabout, Traveling to Borella through Baseline 07.30-09.00 08.00-09.00
41 Cemetery roundabout, Entering Bullers Road 11.00-12.00 11.00-12.00

General Stuff

Guests start arriving on Tuesday November 12th and continue till Thursday (the 14th). The new highway will make traffic from the Airport to Colombo not bad, but they will need to get to their hotels, messing up everything from Kelaniya on in, especially Baseline Road and Bauddhaloka Mawatha. Some private jets will also be arriving at Ratmalana Airport, messing up the Galle Road.

From the 13th there will be meetings and events at the BMICH, making traffic between there and the hotels bad. Specifically, avoid Bauddhaloka Mawatha. BMICH will be busy till the 17th.

The official opening is on the 15th, at Nelum Pokuna. This is near Town Hall and will basically mess up everything.

The main meetings are from the 16th-17th at Waters Edge in Battaramulla. This will mess up the Parliament Road for sure, and basically everything between there and the hotels.

CHOGM Event Calendar

Date Day Events Locations
12th Tuesday – Heads Of State arriving from airports
– Business Forum (Cinnamon Grand)
– Airports, Hotels
– Cinnamon Grand
13th Wednesday – Heads Of State arriving
– Foreign Ministers Meeting (BMICH)
– Meeting on Harare Declaration (BMICH)
– Business Forum (Cinnamon G)
– Airports, Hotels
– BMICH
– Cinnamon Grand
14th Thursday – Heads Of State Arriving
– FMs Meeting (BMICH)
– Civil Society Roundtable (BMICH)
– Press Conferences (BMICH)
– Business Forum (Cinnamon G)
– Airports, Hotels
– BMICH
– Cinnamon Grand
15th Friday – Opening And Conference (Nelum Pokuna)
– Main Meetings (Waters Edge)
– Youth Dialogue (BMICH)
– Press Conferences (BMICH)
– Nelum Pokuna
– Waters Edge
– BMICH
16th Saturday – Main Meetings (Waters Edge)
– Sports Breakfast (BMICH)
– Press Conferences (BMICH)
– Waters Edge
– BMICH
17th Sunday – Main Meetings (Waters Edge)
– Concluding Press Conference (BMICH)
– Waters Edge
– BMICH

Broadly, the heads of state arrive and they have to get to their hotels. Meanwhile events are starting up at BMICH. The thing kicks off on the 15th and they start having their main meetings at Waters Edge. The effect is that everything between Colombo 1 and 3 (where the hotels are) and Battaramulla and BMICH has to periodically and somewhat randomly close down to let them travel through.

CHOGM Traffic Plan (Unofficial)

Date Day Locations Avoid
12th Tuesday – Airports, Hotels
– Cinnamon Grand
– Airport Highway
– Baseline Road
– Galle Road from Ratmalana

– anything leading to a hotel (everything)

13th Wednesday – Airports, Hotels
– BMICH
– Cinnamon Grand
-Bauddhaloka Mawatha

– Airport Highway
– Baseline Road
– Galle Road from Ratmalana
– anything leading to a hotel (everything)

14th Thursday – Airports, Hotels
– BMICH
– Cinnamon Grand
-Bauddhaloka Mawatha

– Airport Highway
– Baseline Road
– Galle Road from Ratmalana
– anything leading to a hotel (everything)

15th Friday – Nelum Pokuna
– Waters Edge
– BMICH
Anything between the hotels
Town Hall
BMICH
Battaramulla.

Parliament Road
Bauddhaloka Mawatha
Union Place
Ward Place
Horton Place, etc.

16th Saturday – Waters Edge
– BMICH
Parliament Road
Bauddhaloka Mawatha
Union Place
Ward Place
Horton Place, etc.
17th Sunday – Waters Edge
– BMICH
Parliament Road
Bauddhaloka Mawatha
Union Place
Ward Place
Horton Place, etc.

If you take the airports, hotels, BMICH and Waters Edge as endpoints, that effectively snarls all of Colombo. The only parts that are relatively safe are Colombo 5 (Havelock Town), Wellawatte, Nugegoda, Dehiwala and Mount Lavinia.

The Out Of Town Stuff

Dates Event Location
10th-14th Peoples Forum Hikkaduwa
10th-14th Youth Forum Hambantota
15th-16th Spouses Programs Colombo, Kandy, Galle
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