Commute

The Bangalore Traffic Police finally seems to be taking steps to solving one of the most acute pain-points of the city - its traffic. The city’s traffic police appear to be going head over heels in plans to apprehend traffic violators and control traffic.This concern was evident when the Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa inaugurated a new Traffic Management Centre (TMC) on Monday, 6th October. The city’s current TMC has been running from the Ashoknagar Police Station, since April. The new TMC will act as the the nerve centre of all traffic related activities in the city and will function…

In response to a public interest litigation, the High Court of Karnataka had directed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) three months ago to constitute a special committee to monitor its road widening projects and the Metro works. But, the court's intervention has not impacted the 'free' uprooting of trees.  Trees impacted Kanakapura RoadBellary RoadRace Course RoadPalace RoadSarjapur RoadBBMP note constituting the committee The BBMP constituted the nine-member 'Sustainable Development Empowered Technical Advisory Committee' in July 2008, under the chairmanship of Yellapa Reddy, a retired officer of the Indian Forest Service (IFS. According to the court's order, the committee has…

Once upon a time, buses were...boring. Not boring only because one had to wait endlessly for them, but also because the buses were uniformly coloured and so dull. All that has changed now, and I would like to share with you some of the rainbow bursts that ply through the city’s roads, some sporting pictures of nubile maidens and some messages laden with deep significance. I decided to take a ride on a couple of these buses just to talk to the conductors and the drivers. In some instances, the driver had been assigned recently to the bus, and was…

If you have driven at night in Bangalore, you know what a pain it is. Even if you don't drive in Bangalore, you will know how much night traffic hurts. Your eyes that is.In good old Bharat, we had half blackened headlights. Because a high-beam was painful and it was deemed best to cover the top half of the light in black paint so that everyone's eyes were spared.But for whatever reason (if any of you know, please write in!) the half covered lights have gone! And what we are left with is a city, full of people driving around…

There was a time, not so long ago, when I enjoyed driving in Bangalore (as it was then). The run from J.P. Nagar to Century Club in Cubbon Park was a breeze.No more. Things have changed – as they will. The human population has exploded; the vehicle population has increased even faster. Fuel prices have gone through the roof. Roads are proving inadequate and increasingly unusable. There is mounting recognition that the citizen should use public transport more and more. The Administration is undoubtedly doing its bit – except that it is falling woefully short of needs. The ancient ubiquitous…

The acronym RTO evokes a mixture of worry, apprehension and confusion in Bangalore city’s novice vehicle owners. Right from collecting of documents to taking time off other routines to clear tests for that coveted license- it is serious business. This article attempts to make the procedural route to obtaining licenses at any city RTO simple and lucid. All about Learner’s Driving License A valid Learner’s License (LL) is a pre-requisite to get a permanent Driving License (DL). The objective of a Learner’s Driving License is to officiate the process of learning. That is, if you are enrolled in a driving…

Forms carefully filled, procedures checked and driving skills sharpened, does one stand a good chance of getting a driving license? Considering the general experience at RTOs, there can never be an answer in the affirmative every time. That absolutely nobody believes that licenses can be procured without paying bribes is the least of the RTO’s troubles. The department is fogged by confusions regarding procedures and mired in beaurocracy. Touts and agents at every RTO offering free, quick license in exchange for a few hundred rupees are commonplace. When it is not allegations of corruption, it is the irregularities in rules…

From time to time newspapers report that an effort is to be made to improve footpaths (sidewalks, pavements) to benefit pedestrian movement. In 2005 and 2006 such statements came from the office of the Commissioner, BMP. In 2007 the Deccan Herald reported that the Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic & Security) had announced work on, ‘a policy dedicated to construction and maintenance of footpaths’. There is hardly any evidence on the ground of results from either initiative.Footpath access blocked by Police (Pic: S.G.Narayanamurthy)16th Cross kerb 2007 (Pic: S.G.Narayanamurthy)Bank van customers block Footpath (Pic: S.G.Narayanamurthy)Car equipping work on Footpath (Pic: S.G.Narayanamurthy)Cars…

 For four days last week, Thursday to Sunday, BMTC dropped the bus fares for the city's Volvo buses to Rs.1. The Hindu reported on 16 September that several buses suffered damages to tyres, suspensions, blowers, window screens, seat fabrics, and more. ⊕

In a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) at the High Court of Karnataka, the CMH Road Shops and Traders’ Association has challenged the legality of the Metro Rail Project implemented by the BMRC (Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation). On 18th and 20th August, Justice Gopala Gowda and Chief Justice P D Dinakaran heard legal arguments. Citizen Matters has been following the proceedings.Is the Metro legal? Government: ‘yes’, Traders: ‘no’ Pramila Nesargi, legal counsel representing the CMH Road traders, argued that in both Kolkata and Delhi, the metro was constructed after the passage of the “Metro Railways Construction of Works Act”. This Act…