Hetauda, Sept. 12 -- Mankumari Lama and her two sons boarded a Kathmandu-bound bus from Hetauda Buspark at 5pm on Thursday. Expecting a routine journey, they did not reach their destination until 10am the next morning. It took them a gruelling 15 hours to reach Kalanki in Kathmandu. The bus crept along the Tribhuvan Highway, navigating heavy traffic of freight trucks and long-distance passenger vehicles.

The route presented severe operational hazards. Long-haul trucks and oversized buses were repeatedly forced to reverse on hairpin bends to negotiate sharp turns. By the time Lama's bus reached Simbhanjyang in Thaha Municipality-after passing the treacherous Barhaghumti, Chuniya and Suryamod-it was already 11 pm.

Lama's hopes of an easy ...