Commute

Picture taken in August 2014, just before the potholes were filled with mud and stones.Pic: Pavan KulkarniLocalites have filled this opening on the sidewalk to ensure that kids wading through water don't slip into it and drown. Anyone who fumbles here is certain to have a fall and get injured. Pic: Pavan KulkarniThis sidewalk with missing slabs is submerged under the flood water after a heavy shower. Will it be made an issue only after an accident? Pic: Pavan KulkarniPipeline road, besides the rear entrance of Golden Grand. Pic: Pavan KulkarniPic: Pavan KulkarniPicture taken only three days after the potholes…

As the night sets in, autos hope to grab a share of people who want to reach their home but don't have buses. File pic. What do you do when you finish your duty at 9 pm and want to get back home, but your office does not have cab services? You are forced to hire an auto or a cab. Because, there is simply not enough bus transport available at that time of the night. Bangalore is no longer the small provincial town of the last century, but a mega polis where different industries contribute to the city’s income.…

If you are an average person travelling in Bangalore, whichever mode of transport you opt for, can be a daunting task. If you choose to travel by your own personal vehicle, haphazard traffic and the moon-craters called pot-holes only make sure your stress levels rise meteorically. Recently, the menace of auto-drivers over-charging, arguing and misbehaving with passengers has been highlighted by many leading papers, citizen forums and on social-media. This has led to various endeavours to curb the problem such as the setting up of help-lines to report auto-drivers, Bangalore Traffic Police conducting an auto-raid in July and the Peace…

Pic courtesy: BMRCL facebook page After repeated delays in meeting the original schedule, Bangalore Metro is set to extend its footprint in North Bengauru. However, the extension is a mere 2.5 kilometres on Reach 3 (B) - the Peenya Industry – Nagasandra stretch. The trial runs began on September 30, 2014, and the service is likely to be inaugurated in December 2014 or January 2015. The three new stations on this stretch are T Dasarahalli, Jalahalli and Nagasandra. The Nagasandra station is located at a distance of around 12.8 km from Mantri Square station. Will Reach 3B of Metro make…

Radha lives in R T Nagar. With her office located in Koramangala, she has to travel around 15 kilometres every day. Without convenient bus connectivity, she had had to resort to autos or cabs. When her neighbour who also commutes to Koramangala everyday, offered a shared ride, Radha was only too happy. Pic courtesy: paloaltobridge.com A small solution to the enormous traffic on road during peak hours, the concept of cab sharing has picked up in Bangalore. There are also many mobile apps and websites to help people find like-minded travellers on the same route. “I remember going to Goa…

Traffic that needs to take a right turn at Windsor Manors causes roadblocks for airport traffic. Pic: Google Earth. Namma Bengaluru used to be a very beautiful city. There were beautiful circles, tree-lined avenues and lots of greenery to complement the wonderful weather. However, in the last few years a lot of the beauty has been destroyed in the name of development. First the circles were removed - owing to the misplaced notion that its better for traffic to have a four or five way intersection. Then the trees were removed - owing to the misplaced notion that widening roads…

Four road safety entrepreneurs have been selected as winners in the innovation challenge “Safer Roads, Safer India: Game Changing Innovations that Save Lives.” Their projects were evaluated by an expert panel of judges and chosen as the top solutions from a pool of more than 80 entries that activate citizenship, improve governance to be more responsive, update infrastructure, and use technology to protect drivers, passengers, and bystanders. The four winning entrepreneurs, who were selected for meeting criteria for innovation, social impact, and sustainability, will each receive INR 300,000 as prize money funding to support their road safety innovations. They are…

It is an important day in Kiran's life - he has an interview scheduled in Delhi. He has booked the 7 am flight from Bengaluru, and a cab to the airport at 5 am. He gets ready by 4.30 am and calls the assigned cab driver's number. There's no answer. He calls twice, thrice, four times - still no answer. It is 4.45 am when he calls the cab helpline. The sleepy voice that picks the call, after listening to him, gives him the number of another driver. This driver refuses to serve Kiran’s request claiming that he is far…

Non-Karnataka vehicles are a common sight on Bangalore's roads. Pic: Nikita Malusare You move in to Bengaluru from another part of India. You plan to move out after a few years. Along with everything else that you have to do to stay in the city, there’s something important you need to do: Re-register your vehicle and change the vehicle number. But is this a fair demand always? Karnataka government laws mandate vehicles staying in Karnataka for more than 30 days to pay lifetime tax in lump sum, and then withdraw the balance amount from the government of the city where…

Worshipful Mayor Smt Shantakumari, Kindly accept my heartfelt congrats as well as the ‘Best Wishes’ on entering your new office as the Mayor of Bangalore, from this hearing-challenged senior citizen (75+), a consumer/social activist !! I learnt from a website that dedicates itself for the welfare of the citizens of our city, that you're presently on a mission, visiting nook and corner, to study the civic problems and to improve the state of affairs, amenities, etc, so that we could lead a peaceful life, during your regime. Kindly excuse my liberties to come out with the following suggestions: After worshipping…