QUALITATIVE STUDY ON THE SHORT-TERM ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF THE NEW BYPASS ROAD ON TSIMASHAM CORE AREA BUSINESSES, CHUKHA, BHUTAN

Abstract

A relief route or bypass’s impact on the town’s economy is not significant for medium and large cities than in comparison to the small towns. Though there are positive impacts, such as less noise, traffic, and peace, business people in the town fear that it will impact their sales, and property value will decline. Research studies indicate that other factors affect the economy of a bypassed town in addition to the size of the population. The outcomes of the studies are neither consistent nor conclusive across locations; however, the most negatively impacted are small towns dependent on highway traffic. This paper seeks to study the economic impact on small towns through the study of Tsimasham, where Chukha-Damchu's new bypass road became operational with effect from July 18, 2018. Survey questionnaires were used to interview the business people in the Tsimasham core area. The findings confirm most of the earlier research results of small towns that businesses in the Tsimasham core area are adversely impacted. There are also other issues such as the lack of commuting options for the residents as public transport or taxis barely enter the town. This could be due to the geographical isolation of the town as it is located at a higher level than the new bypass road.