JOIN USThere are many stretches in Bangalore, which, unfortunately, are an ordeal for citizens to cross. One either has to sprint across the road or wait forever for the traffic to slow down. One such example is the stretch on Tumkur Road, near Yeshwanthpur Railway Station. With traffic flowing from all directions and some of the motorists even flouting rules, people have a tough time reaching the other side.
Those bound for the Yeshwanthpur Railway Station are, most often, seen battling with the traffic and their luggage. Some even go through Yeshwanthpur Metro Station to reach the other side safely. In spite of the ‘U’ turn being prohibited, people take the turn when the traffic police are not around.
Vehicles barge in from service road to the road that connects to Peenya.
“It’s a highway and motorists take a U-turn even when it is prohibited. So this leads to the criss-crossing of vehicles leaving the pedestrians at lurch. For people, convenience has become more important than safety,” says Vinayak, who lives here. Broken footpaths, absence of zebra crossings and signals and unfriendly underpasses make life miserable for the residents here.
“We complained to the officials almost two months back and they have been saying that they will bring solutions. But when? asks Pushpa, a resident of the area.
“People have to cross the road where there is no traffic signal or zebra crossing. Sometimes, there is not even a traffic cop there. Crossing the road is difficult during peak hours and otherwise. During peak hours, one has to wait for 15 to 25 minutes. “I go through the Metro station to reach the other side of the road. That’s the only safe option at the moment,” adds Shreya.
“The traffic police department had conducted a survey here. We have noticed that this stretch is causing a lot of inconvenience to the people. Therefore, we are trying to bring about a solution at
the earliest,” explains a traffic police official.
Children are more vulnerable especially when they are crossing the road without being accompanied by adults. “My daughter keeps crossing the road and she just runs faster as she can’t wait for hours to cross. It scares me to think that she might get injured,” says Arthi Subramanya, a concerned mother.
“We halt the traffic for old people and children to cross the road safely,” informs Yoginanda, a traffic police, at the spot.
Seventy-two-year-old, Subramanyam, a resident of the area, however, adds, “The traffic police can mostly be seen standing on one side of the road, which is the service road. Sometimes, they are not even there. Until a solution is brought about, we need traffic police on both sides of the road to help pedestrians cross safely.”
“The other day, I wanted to go to the bank, which is on the other side of the road, and I waited for nearly 20 minutes. Finally, I returned home unable to cross the road,” says Shridhar, a resident of the area.