Commute

Annually, many countries observe International Car Free Day on 22nd September to encourage people to leave their cars or reduce their use. Since 2011, ESAF, a city based non-profit that works on making Bangalore more inclusive, has been reminding Bangaloreans to lower or eliminate dependence on cars. As per Senior Programme Officer Manju George, the campaign which started on September 21st this year, will last until the 30th. This is being done through flyers, posters and discussions in offices, residential neighbourhoods, street corners, eateries, stores, colleges, et al. The message is to consider walking, cycling, taking public transport or at…

Have you ever travelled from Dr Rajkumar Road underpass via Okalipuram to reach City Central Railway station in Bangalore? If you have, you will agree that it takes nothing less than 45 minutes to one hour to cross the 1.5 kms road. You have to beat heavy traffic jams on the uphill road burning precious fuel, avoid jaywalking people, vehicles criss-crossing at intersections, potholed roads and the heavy traffic load on the road. The long-awaited project of creating an underpass, rail over-bridge at the two Okalipuram railway tracks and the 8-lane corridor is proposed to take off in December 2013.…

With the increasing time you spend at traffic signals in Bengaluru, you only think about one government department — Traffic Department. You may hail them or curse them, but they are on their toes to help the city de-congest. Though the department is approached for approval of all infrastructure projects, there is no authority to it. Limited roads, which are always in a bad state are the biggest hurdle the department faces while struggling to keep the city traffic smooth. Bangalore's Additional Commissioner of Traffic Police, IPS offcer, B Dayananda Pic: Nikita Malusare Additional Commissioner of Traffic Police B Dayananda,…

Last May, the common Bangalorean voted for a change in the hope that this would be a change for the better. Basic needs such as commutable roads and better civic amenities are turning into luxuries for people living in Bangalore. Even after four months, the new administration is unable to make any real progress. Nothing has changed. While we painfully negotiate and move from gutter to gutter, all the while suffering bumpy rides, life-size posters of political leaders smile at us, ridiculing our plight. Previously, the poster boys were all from the rank and file of the BJP. Now it’s…

A resident from one of the 80 apartments in the Sobha apartments neighbourhood/Green Glen Layout posed an open challenge last week, daring people to walk down the main access road grandly named Palm Avenue, without getting one's feet/trousers dirty. The terrible roads of Green Glen Layout. Pic: Thomas V. Another resident took it further capturing the state of the road in a video clip, shooting as he drove through the area, with the camera positioned at road level.  It may not be very different from hundreds of other roads in the city, but that doesn't decrease the pain that thousands…

A few days back BMTC Volvo crew went on a flash strike, inconveniencing thousands of commuters, against a new rule scrapping overtime when they fail to meet a target for the number of trips per day. They cited bad traffic and road conditions for not being able to meet those targets consistently. When we look at it from a more sympathetic perspective, BMTC crew and Traffic police personnel do bear most of the brunt from fast-crumbling roads and the rains which have added an all new dimension to an already overcrowded, grid-locked city. Given these conditions and the need to…

This is an attempt to share information about roads. Lot of information is also available in the internet, so I have taken care not to repeat the same. So, how is a road different from regular soil surface, and why so? Let’s take regular surface; the playground. It is fine to play when there is no rain. We can even go cycling or ride a motorbike. However, when it rains, it becomes soft and slushy. Cycle wheel or feet go deeper into the soil. In such cases, what do we do? We place a big stone and step over it.…

The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) commissioner seems to have sprung into action, especially after Chief minister Siddaramaiah’s  'surprise' city tour on September 7, 2013. Taking the directions of Siddharamaiah forward, BBMP Commissioner Lakshmi Narayana, told Citizen Matters that all arterial and sub-arterial roads in Bangalore will be pothole-free by end of February, 2014. However, citizens have heard such claims and promises many a time in the past.  High quality concrete roadsA pilot project worth 25 lakhs to develop Park House Road in front of Karnataka Public Services Commission office, behind Vidhana Soudha, into a high-quality concrete road, was underway. The…

Metro Phase II work takes off, with KIADB starting the land acquisition process. File pic. Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board  (KIADB) conducted the first hearing for the owners of properties to be acquired for alignment of Metro Phase II on 4 September, 2013. The properties notified were for Ragigudda and Silk Board stations, on RV Road- Bommasandra line. Metro is all geared up to start the Phase-II work by January 2014. To achieve this target, the process of identification of properties was already initiated by KIADB officers deputed to the Metro, in the last few weeks. In the first hearing,…

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has started with its homework, in a bid to merge the elevated road from Jayadeva junction to Central Silk Board with Metro’s R V Road - Bommasandra line. The preliminary research and other procedures are underway. The flyover planned to be extended till Central Silk Board at a cost of Rs.150 crore has already been announced in the maiden budget of the Congress government. “The project is still in the preliminary stage. A feasibility report and DPR is yet to be formed, which needs to be assigned to a consultant,” says BBMP Executive Engineer,…