‘Bus stop’ installation is now open in Bengaluru

The cry for strengthening public transport infrastructure in Bengaluru is growing louder and now a mobile installation project is doing its bit for the movement.

A conceptual bus stop was unveiled at Hosanagar on Thursday to highlight the mobility needs of women engaged in the city’s informal sector. Fittingly, over 200 female tailors, domestic workers, vegetable sellers, and small shop owners were involved in the creation of this life-size installation. They reside in nine different localities and the closest bus stop is 3 to 5 km away from their homes.

The installation is called Alli Serona Bus Stop. It is an initiative by Alli Serona, a social impact collective comprising civil society organisations, artists, and women from the informal workforce in Bengaluru.

Mallika Arya, a member of the collective, clarifies that the installation is not a model of what an ideal bus stop should be. “It looks like a hut from a distance,” she admits. It is instead a platform to “spark conversations” about the transportation needs of the underserved sections of the city, participatory governance, and climate mitigation.

Accessibility to good quality bus stops can transform lives, the collective believes. “It can open a world of opportunities. These women can look for jobs for themselves, and schools and colleges for their kids further away. Currently, most of these women walk, cycle, or hitchhike to work,” says Mallika. Either they can’t reach the bus stops easily or the bus stops are poorly maintained. Some are deterred by safety concerns, she reasons.

Incidentally, three of the four sites chosen for the installation are right next to defunct bus stops.

The installation is like a walk-through gallery. There will be a mock ticket counter, a few chairs to sit on, and a stand with copies of a newsletter printed in English and Kannada. You can also find video panels depicting Alli Serona’s engagement with these women. These range from the community-building activities they organised at Marathahalli Slum Board Quarters to them getting the women to join them in auditing the local bus stops.

“Women from the local communities will be present to interact with people,” says Mallika. They will also hand over a postcard where they have listed four new bus routes they would like in their neighbourhoods. Baiyyappanahalli-Banaswadi, KR Puram-Medehalli, Byrasandra-Wilson Garden, and Whitefield–ITPL are those feeder bus routes. The Alli Serona team has shared this wishlist with both BMTC and BBMP for their consideration.