Tired of traffic snarls, 50 women man junction

Tired of traffic snarls at the busy Devarabeesanahalli junction on the Outer Ring Road, a group of 50 women volunteers along with an elderly man and an autorickshaw driver have taken to regulating the traffic themselves.

The members of Devarabeesanahalli - Citizens Activist Forum (D-CAF) saw that vehicular movement was becoming more congested by the day.

 Motorists were stuck for hours, while school buses and ambulances struggled through thousands of vehicles.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, Seema, a member of D-CAF, said, “The initiative began a couple of weeks ago. Initially, only four to five women were part of the group. But now, we have around 50 women volunteers, an elderly person and an autorickshaw driver, who have come together to help ease the traffic.

All of us take turns and man the traffic from 7.30 am to 8 pm. The traffic had become unbearable and children were getting late to school every day, not to mention office-goers who would spend more than 30 minutes at the junction.” 

“We were especially disturbed when we sighted an ambulance that was trying to manoeuvre through the congestion. A few volunteers help people park vehicles at accommodated spots, as most of the time they were parked wherever there is space, adding to the jams. We have also put up several sign boards depicting no-entry zones and one-ways to help motorists,” she said.

The members of D-CAF said for now, the traffic has eased up a little. “Our aim is to make sure that there is an easy movement of traffic, to educate motorists to follow rules and maintain lane discipline. If the rules are followed, most of the problem is solved.”

Seema said, “Without the help of the local traffic police, we would not have been able to handle the traffic congestion. We contacted them and proposed the plan. The traffic police immediately agreed to help us. People are also appreciating our efforts and we hope more volunteers will join us.”

The Airport traffic police said, “There around five tech parks in the area and several housing complexes. The vehicle density is 1.4 lakh in the area and around 3.5 lakh on the Outer Ring Road.

 They all converge at the Devarabeesanahalli junction leading to heavy traffic. The residents of the area came up with the solution and we are supporting them.”