Honking won't help!

negative attitude

With increasing traffic, instances of road rage in the City is increasing on a rapid scale. Bangaloreans are short on patience and don’t hesitate to flout traffic rules — or even break into an argument with other motorists for petty reasons.

Jumping lanes and blocking the space on roads have become alarmingly common during peak traffic hours.Some feel this is a consequence of the rapid rate at which traffic is growing and unless that goes down, things are not going to change. “Constant honking has become a norm in the City. Motorists don’t listen to people who don’t honk.

It looks like everyone is in a rush and no one is willing to wait. Earlier, Bangalore wasn’t so bad when it came to road rage — but things are changing now,” says Vishal K, a motorist.

According to the Bangalore City Traffic Police, the vehicle population in the
City in the year 2012 is 41,71,062.

This data has been recorded till February
2012 and the details have been made available on the official website of the City Traffic Police.

The website also states that two-wheelers have been booked for the most number of cases — which is 37 per cent.

Other vehicles have considerably low statistics — for instance, the number of cases booked against autorickshaws is 11.7 per cent, buses 1.9 per cent, LMVs 29 per cent.Some others, who drive on a regular basis, say that they often end up quarrelling and arguing with other motorists.

“I have often gotten into heated arguments with others on the road. Some
of them keep honking although they can see that there is hardly any space to move ahead. It is a rat race out there on the streets and no one heeds anything.

Most people don’t follow lane-driving rules and cause inconvenience to those
who are making an effort to follow lane discipline,” says Rusheil, who drives
regularly.

A few others point out that they have seen many motorists whiz past them even before a signal turns green. “It is sad that these offenders are not caught by the traffic police.

Seeing motorists ignoring those last two seconds of a red signal and racing
forward is a common sight at some of the major signals in the City. Most of them
are youngsters — this shows their level of patience,” states Dinesh, a
professional.

Lavanya, who often bikes to work, says that this journey sometimes tends to become hazardous.

 “Motorists don’t give bikers way to navigate. I have often ended up arguing with many motorists — but they don’t seem to understand. The tolerance level among Bangaloreans is going down everyday,” she explains.

Bangaloreans feel that strict vigilance is the only way out of this mess and suggest that the traffic police by more alert during peak traffic hours.