The road ahead is lined with promises

The road ahead is lined with promises
A Room Full Of Views, Ideas
The Times of India

Tackling Bangalore traffic is not an easy job. At the first Times Round Table organised by The Times of India on Saturday at the Windsor Manor Sheraton Hotel and Towers, there were potholes to be negotiated, lame excuses countered strongly and finally the commitments were given.

Eventually, a concrete plan of action was drawn up, responsibilities allocated and deadlines fixed.

Stakeholders of traffic management gathered to offer solutions for the city’s grid-locked roads and discussed ‘Traffic: How to Decongest Bangalore’.
Here’s what transpired at the closed-door meet. The man under the spotlight was police commissioner Ajai Kumar Singh whose frame of reference related to the increasing number of driving licenses issued, the low quality public transport system, poor road sense among citizens, the pathetic state of infrastructure and lack of co-ordination among the agencies. “Traffic management must get due importance in town planning which it is not getting at present,’’ Singh said.

Public Affairs Committee (PAC) director A Ravindra echoed this view and said that in every city traffic management is town planning. He added that the quality of speedbreakers was so poor that they had instead become a traffic hazard.

But member of the empowered committee on infrastructure and traffic R K Misra, felt that most plans were not translating into action because of “lack of commitment and desire among most civic agencies’’.

Programme moderator The Times of India resident editor H S Balram kicked off the session with: “We are here because we want to find a solution to regulate traffic, to know who’s responsible for the present scenario on Bangalore roads, to understand what needs to be done to streamline traffic. Let’s come up with simple practical solutions.’’ Alongside were assistant resident editor Jayanth Kodkani, who spoke on how the Times Round Table was conceived, chief of metro bureau K R Sreenivas who introduced the panelists, Principal Correspondent S Kushala, Senior City Correspondent Azmath and City Correspondent Smitha Rao. The Times of India RMD Associate General Manager Franklyn James presented mementoes to the panelists. Reporters Paawana Poonacha and Hemali Chhapia were also present.

While the meeting was just step one, the follow-ups will be intense. And as Biocon Chairman Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw said at the end: “With no coordination among the state agencies, this Times Round Table conference is going to help a great deal. Let’s all meet after three months to follow up on our activities.’’