B'lore ranks low in study on road quality

 A recent study by the Centre for Science and Environment had revealed that the City is ranked low in the country in terms of the number of accidents and fatalities. Now, another study being conducted by Bangalore traffic experts shows that the City ranks low in road condition too.

The ongoing study by traffic expert M N Sreehari and his team of Traffic Engineers and Safety Trainers (TEST), along with MTech students from different colleges, shows that Bangalore ranks eighth in the list of top 10 Indian cities in terms of road function, structure and operation.

Some of the cities surveyed are Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune, Navi Mumbai, Delhi-NCR region, Mysore and Mangalore.

Final touches are being given to the report. Once the study is completed, the report will be submitted to the government and the BBMP for implementation of the suggestions for improving the City roads.

Sreehari told Deccan Herald: “Bangalore’s roads fare poorly because traffic load and volume are high, quantity and quality of bitumen used is less than the prescribed 5.5 per cent and road repairs are not up to the mark. Also, there are issues pertaining to parking, road safety and condition of pavements. There are also long traffic jams, poor traffic management and entry of heavy vehicle on City roads.”

Bangalore has a population of around one crore, 52 lakh vehicles, 30,000 km of road length, 32,000 km of footpath and 48,000 junctions of all types (of these, 5,000 junctions are problematic). Among them, 2,000 junctions need immediate attention by way of signals, deployment of traffic police, control and management. This is because most junctions are not planned properly, he said.

Sreehari said, “Delhi has over 30,000 km of roads and tops the list. This is because it is the national capital. The roads are normally maintained well. Roads in Mumbai and Mangalore are good because they are concrete ones. Each time it rains, cement roads become stronger, but bitumen gets weak. In case of Pune, Delhi-NCR and Navi Mumbai, the roads are planned well and developed keeping population and vehicular influx in mind. The problems in Hyderabad and Bangalore are similar. But Hyderabad scores a little better because it has a combination of concrete and bitumen roads. In case of Chennai, barring some areas, the arterial roads are good."