Hellish Roads 3: Hosur Road

Vehicles piled up during rush hour traffic at the Bommanahalli junction on Hosur Road.

HOSUR ROAD & ELECTRONIC CITY
It’s everyday shock option for techies!
Times of India

This is one road that puts Karnataka on the international IT map. A road where some of India’s richest and world’s leading IT gurus drive in for prosperity. Their software and hardware siblings, numbering over a lakh, too ply (read scrawl) on this stretch before they log on to the world of chips and bytes. The 15-km ordeal on Hosur Road tortures them so much that they are left wondering how to escape this ESOP (Everyday Shock Option!).

With over 130 IT firms and other key industries located on the stretch, employees are driven up the wall by endless traffic jams. The journey back home is often more arduous than the one to work with jams after 5 pm often lasting over three hours.

1 What is the average speed on this stretch? It is around 15 kmph during the peak hour.

2 What volume of traffic can this road take?
Over 17,000 pcu (passenger car unit) per hour between 9 am and 11 am and 5 pm and 8 pm. The capacity of pcu for the stretch is 10,000.

3 What are the bottlenecks?
Madivala police station junction, Begur Cross, Garavebhavipalya junction, Kudlu junction, Naganathpura junction, Rupen Agrahara junction, Electronic City junction.

4 What are the major problems?
Inadequate regulation at junctions, haphazard parking, lack of bus bays, improper location of bus stands and junction, huge volume of traffic.

5 Under whose jurisdiction does the road fall?
While the stretch up to Naganathpura comes under the Bangalore City police, the one up to Attibele at the state’s border is under the Bangalore District Police. A longstanding proposal has been to include the entire Hosur Road stretch under the City police limits.

6 What police say...
•While the volume of traffic is huge, signals have been put up at many junctions. Better road signages are in place. Private security guards assist in manning traffic on the busy stretch, says DCP Traffic (East) M.A. Saleem.

•The Electronics City Association has provided private security guards to man traffic at major junctions. The huge volume of traffic is restricted on the stretch at the Electronics City, says Bangalore (Rural) SP Prashanth Kumar Thakur.

7 The inevitable oneway proposal...
To convert Hosur Road into one-way from Silk Board junction up to check post near Madivala and from Sarjapur Road up to Krupanidhi. Vehicles will take a right turn and join Silk Board junction, forming a triangle.

8 The long-term plan... A dedicated flyover from the city to Electronics City.

9 Other plans...
•To improve connectivity of link roads and divert trucks away from Hosur Road.

•Link roads including those from Sarjapur to Naganathpura near Central Jail and Bannerghatta Road to Hosur Road.

10 Findings of a study ‘Improvements to Hosur Road’ by Transport Training Institute and Consultancy .
•Journey speed varies from 15 kmph to 45 kmph between various junctions on the stretch.
•Heavy traffic volume during morning and evening peak hours.
•Major constituents: Twowheelers (35%), buses and cars (15%), trucks (10%).
•Proposed plans (both shortand long-term) include better connectivity of link roads, proper location of bus bays and better enforcement by traffic personnel.

11 Some suggestions...
•During the truckers’ strike, there was no traffic jam. Ban movement of trucks on the stretch during peak hours.
•Police have to come out with a concrete plan till the dedicated flyover to Electronics City comes up.

EXPERT OPINION

B.H. Sanjeev Kumar, consultant, BATF
Strengthen connectivity of link roads including Sarjapur Road, Bannerghatta Road & Outer Ring Road.
Look into location of junctions, service roads, bus stops.
Have better regulation of traffic with restrictions over parking and entry of trucks on the stretch during daytime.
Take up events on traffic safety and road usage.