Commute

On this very Independence Day, we, the people of Bengaluru, are still dependent on quasi-governance structures that we have inherited from the British. Let me not get philosophical, but existing legislative structures ensure that without these layers of beurocracy, we cannot bring even a small change. Is it that we have become more accepting and adjusting? Part of the problem is we - the citizens, I realise. Many of our fellow Bangaloreans stand at places other than the earmarked bus stands. Also, the corporates do not realise that they are losing quality time of their employee. The corporates do not…

Sony World junction is a nightmare for vehicles during peak hour traffic. Pic: Ganga Madappa Driving from Electronic City to reach Indiranagar in Bengaluru is a nightmare on most evenings. A precious 20 minutes will be lost while waiting for your turn to cross the Sony World junction signal. BBMP has acknowledged this traffic issue and plans to build a 2.4-km elevated flyover from Ejipura junction to Kendriya Sadan to improve the situation. Unlike most solutions devised by officials and consultants, this is one of the few projects initiated following public demand. In 2011, BBMP had planned to construct a…

  Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT), UDD, Government of Karnataka which is part of Bangalore Coalition for Open Streets (BCOS) along with local partner Yelahanka United Environment Association (YUVA) conducted the second edition of the  ‘Cycle Day’ event in Yelahanka New Town next to the Allalasandra lake. Yelahanka United Environment Association (YUVA) is the local partner in this initiative and have come forward to take this event to their local community. Sunday August 3rd, saw 13A Main Road in Yelahanka New Town, temporarily closed to motorised traffic, and transformed into an “open, people-friendly street” to promote cycling, walking, fitness and…

Cyclists have been a part of the commuter fabric for decades now, from the milkman, newspaper boy, postman, students and others. Though there is no record of the exact number of cyclists commuting to work, the last couple of years have seen a new wave of bicycle riders earning the city of Bengaluru the title — “Cycle Capital of India.” The cycling activities in the city include weekend long distance cycling, adventure cycling, awareness creation etc. Many of these riders have become full-fledged commuter cyclists. There has been a change in perception and acceptance of this small but significant group.…

  Pic courtesy: https://www.flickr.com/photos/nostalgia2009/4833664924 Since a couple of years, I have been seeing how transport infrastructure in Bengaluru has been deteriorating. I thought of putting my GIS knowledge to some good use, to present potential opportunities to improve and provide alternatives to planning and infrastructure of the city. If you have specific datasets that you wish to share for Bangalore city, please do share it with me. My prime focus now is on K R Puram Junction. My travel from home to Whitefield is exactly 15 minutes in car, but it now takes more than 2 hours due to traffic…

Residents of the eastern part of Bengaluru would have found it difficult to ignore the omnipresent banners that have sprung up on road dividers, announcing the launch of “signal free corridor road from Domlur to Murugeshpalya.” I want to assess the implications of this project to the city transport’s most neglected users - the pedestrians. One of the banners on the Old Airport Road announcing the launching of the signal free corridor The principal-agent problem At the first glance, projects that solely promise faster moving traffic are illustrative of the classical principal-agent problem in governmental issues. On one side, there…

For reasons beyond my conviction, I have stopped traveling by train and interstate bus. Maybe these experiences could be a few of the reasons. One morning my aunt was travelling to Chennai by the Shatabdi and the expected time of departure (ETD) of the train was 6 am from the Bangalore City station. It was drizzling a bit, so I cautioned that we leave the house at 5 am, though we were just about 8 kms from the train station. I know the roads and traffic with small rains have perfectly predictable outcomes – road blocks and traffic jams, even…

There has been renewed hope among some circles in Bengaluru after the Union Railway Minister Mr. Sadananda Gowda made a mention in the Rail Budget about the much delayed Suburban Rail System. The project also found a mention in Siddaramaiah state budget last year. A Special Purpose Vehicle was formed as well by the State Government. This was without the involvement of Railway Board. Praja RAAG, an online forum, has been pushing for implementation of CRS for the last few years. Unfortunately, they have found little support from political circles or from citizens for this project. This is not surprising…

If the namma Bengaluru's commuters were asked to ‘red flag’ a few of the city’s roads, the chances are that Suranjan Das Road would be among the top three. This 3.95 km ‘nightmare’ as commuters call it does more than connecting Old Madras to the Old Airport Road. It is the exit road for all the areas around it like Jeevanbhima Nagar, Thippasandra, B M Kaval, C V Raman Nagar, Kaggadasapura and Vimanapura. The road also has on both sides private companies, public sector establishments and educational institutes and therefore has thousands of commuters converging in throughout the day. The…

  Auto Rickshaws in the city have once again come into the limelight with the recent Auto Raid that was conducted by the Bangalore Traffic Police (BTP). On June 30th, over 700 members of the BTP, dressed in plainclothes, embarked on an operation to track down auto drivers who were not doing their due diligence to society. At the end of the 15-hour long sting operation, around 3,350 auto drivers were fined, and 450 autos were seized.The Auto Raid also threw up a shocking statistic - four in every ten auto drivers in the city were errant! Rules for auto…