In transit mode

In transit mode
Deccan Herald
Who says Bangalore traffic is turning the City upside down? Read on the experiences of people that have made great use of it, in transit.

The big spat on City’s infrastructure that has been going back and forth could just be a hype; on the potholed roads, dug up roads, apology for roads and painful traffic on the roads.

Consider this. Ten out of 10 people, consider traffic snarls to be a way of life in Bangalore and spend their endless wait on the road having their breakfast, reading newspapers, catching up with their mail, chatting long distance with friends, lovers and relatives; accessorising, planning and ideating, even meditating all the while tuned to some great music.

Bangaloreans are a tolerant race, the snap research shows. They have accepted traffic as a given, an every day feature. Instead of complaining or wasting their breath on swear words, they have decided to make great use of their trafficked hours.

Jija Hari Singh, the managing director of Mysore Minerals, commutes from her residence in BTM Layout to her office on M G Road daily. On normal days, which are rare and no more heard of, the travelling time requires 20 minutes but she spends more than an hour.

“If I leave home at nine in the morning I reach office only by 10 am. In the evening, I make sure that I don’t head home at 6 pm because then I reach only by 7.30 pm so I decide to wind up my other work and miss the peak hour. I best use my time in the traffic catching up on missed calls and meditating. If I am not rushed to attend a meeting, I tell my driver to go slow so that I can meditate in peace,” says the bureaucrat.

Music & more

Satish Shenoy of Progeon has to commute to his offices on Bannerghatta Road and in the Electronic City from his house on Lavelle Road. He spends minimum two hours on the road to reach Electronic City, listening to his favourite music.

“When caught in the traffic, I listen to best of Billy Joel, Beatles, etc. I often see some of them reading the newspaper or sending e-mails, and it is a usual sight to see women touching up their make-up at signals,” he says.

Road rage

Satish has an interesting observation regarding road rage. “I see people swear at each other when caught in a jam either on Monday mornings or Friday evenings. I guess it has to do with the beginning of the week blues or the weekend rush,” he adds amusingly.

Traffic snarls have turned brand guru Harish Bijoor into a health freak. “I end up drinking a lot of water in a bad jam. On an average, I drink four litres of water every day, out of which at least two litres get consumed on the road; the longer the wait the higher is my water consumption. I also check my mails on the Net, that is if I’m not on the wheel,” says he.

General Manager, The Park, Lemuel Herbert, is resigned to the fact that between his house off Old Madras Road and the hotel off MG Road, he will have to spend minimum 30 to 45 minutes. “I unwind and listen to music. I also see people bite into a sandwich,” says he.

Executive Chef of The Park, Abhijit Saha, says he often spends time in the traffic jam planning for the day. “I find it a very creative way to plan for things,” he chips in.

Blessing in disguise

For fashion maestro Prasad Bidapa, traffic jams are a blessing in disguise. “I read a lot and I find myself choosing music for my show when caught in an inevitable traffic jam,” he says. According to ophthalmologist Dr Tejaswi, traffic blocks have boosted his social life. “I chat with friends and relatives because other than these jams, I don’t get any time to hook up with them,” he confesses.

For counsellors, traffic snarls in the City provide an insight into human behaviour. “I am amused at the way people behave on the road. While the two wheelers jump on to the pavements to get ahead, people in their four wheelers make sure that the vehicle behind doesn’t get through,” says counsellor Raja Reddy.

So does the traffic really snarl or should we thank the chaos on the road for showing us the way to Nirvana?