Solutions for traffic woes in Electronic City

Solutions for traffic woes in Electronic City
The Times of India

Bangalore: First it was widening of the road leading to the Electronic City. Next, a flyover at the chaotic Central Silk Board junction. Third, it was the elevated expressway which is in the pipeline. But what is the final solution to end traffic woes?

The Electronic City is one of the intense hubs of IT business. During weekdays, if the left half of the road (National Highway 7) is jammed in the morning, it is the right half in the evening. This, one of our readers K V Chandrashekaran has suggested, can be considerably eased if these proposals are given a positive look:

• Several loop-roads connect to the Hosur Road on the left side of the stretch from Bommasandra to Electronics city. If these loops, passing through Kudlugate, are developed immediately, the traffic jam on Hosur Road can be considerably eased.

• Another important loop is the ‘kutcha’ road connecting Koikondanahalli and Naganathapura. The condition of this road is pathetic, though a large number of vehicles pass through it. If this stretch near Sarjapur road is repaired, most of the two and three wheelers, travelling between Madiwala and Electronic City, can use it.

• There is a proposal for constructing an elevated highway between Silk Board Junction and Electronic City. With the present traffic-intensity, earmarking construction area for this project is unimaginable. Instead of this surface structure, the possibility of making a tunnel between Madiwala and Electronics city should be explored. Expert opinion of engineering and Geologists should be sought.

• The space required for dumping of excavated earth will be easier to find than acquiring land for elevated highway. There are a number of lowlying areas in this stretch which can be reclaimed using the tunnel-debris.

CITIZENS SPEAK OUT
The police should paint yellow diamonds at intersections which tend to get congested, paint square box of diamond patterns on roads at the designated intersection. The size of the box is the entire common area of the intersection. This box must be void of stationary vehicles — vehicle users cannot stop on these boxes. Vehicle users must ensure that there is adequate space for the vehicle on the other side before attempting to cross the intersection. Any vehicle caught on the painted area should be fined. There should be no excuses for being stationary on the painted area. * Park the cars on the outskirts and take a train/bus to go into the city (learn from Mumbai and Paris). Pedestrian crossing at cross roads should be strictly implemented. — M Mohan Reddy.

Increase fines a hundred fold for traffic offences. Have a quota on the number of autorickshaws per year.
— Nikhil Menon.

Get rid of potholes. Make the entire stretch of every road of a similar width without trees, manholes, other encroachments such as building material outside a construction site, uneven stones covering manholes, repair work so shoddy that an entire lane is unusable. It is not uncommon to see a road start off as three lanes and shrink down to two or one-and-ahalf lanes at certain spots. Get rid of speed breakers. Smoothen the roads so there are even surfaces along both the sides so that every lane is usable. — Sunita