No respite in sight

The woes are endless for those who commute on Bannerghatta Road, between Dairy Circle and Meenakshi Temple.

   The stretch is congested with traffic between 8.30 am and 11 am and 4 pm and 7 pm. Metrolife visited the spot and spoke to commuters and officials to understand why the chaos here never ends. 

The stretch between Dairy Circle and Meenakshi Temple is plagued by all kinds of
problems. This stretch has colleges, hospitals, IT companies and apartment complexes and people say that despite repeated pleas to the government agencies and management of IT companies, no effort has been made to regulate the movement of traffic.

    J Krishnan, president of Bannerghatta Neighbourhood Association (BANA), whose membership extends to over 25 resident welfare associations on Bannerghatta Road, states that repeated complaints to government authorities such as the Bangalore Traffic Police and the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) have fallen on deaf ears. None of them have bothered to even come and inspect the stretch.

 “We have told the authorities that a few diversions could help ease the traffic congestion during peak hours. The many intersections and traffic signals aggravate the traffic congestion. We have also asked IT companies and apartment blocks to make arrangements to regulate the vehicles entering and exiting their premises. However, nothing seems to have worked,” explains J Krishnan.     

Additional commissioner of police (traffic) B Dayanand points out that after a thorough study of the problems on this stretch, he has recommended to the BBMP that they widen the road.

“The road has to be widened and that has to be done by the BBMP on a priority basis. This is the only connecting road to the areas beyond Bannerghatta Road and the traffic flow has more than doubled on this stretch in the last few years,” Dayanand
reasons.  

M Lakshminarayana, commissioner of the BBMP, concedes that he is aware of the congestion on Bannerghatta Road and says that the only solution is to widen the existing four-lane road to a six-lane one without further delay. “The widening of Bannerghatta Road is one of our main priorities this year and we hope to speed up the project,” says Lakshminarayana.

He feels that temporary diversions could offer some relief to the congestion. “Construction of flyovers on this stretch has been ruled out, but it would help if the traffic converging on to the main road from the side roads could be diverted,” he adds.     

Abraham Kuruvilla, a management consultant, who lives in the vicinity of Bannerghatta Road, notes, “The severity of peak-hour traffic congestion is such that it could take more than 45 minutes to cover a five-kilometre stretch. The much delayed road-widening, when it happens, could be of little help.” Abraham suggests, “Solutions could be found by enforcing lane discipline ruthlessly and rationalising bus stops, widening capillary roads and creating 10 to 12 paid public parking lots  instead of continuing to sanction complexes of varying hues.”

Hitha, a first-year MCom student of Christ College, says, “The turning towards Christ College creates a lot of confusion. The roads will have to be widened to accommodate the growing traffic. And people also don’t follow lane discipline.”

   Murtaza, an employee of IBM, concludes, “One has to wait at traffic signals for not less than 45 minutes. How does one reach one’s destination on time if this is the case everyday?”