Widespread dismay over city's traffic management

Widespread dismay over city's traffic management

The Hindu

14 roads become no-parking zones today

# Decision sparks protests from residents, businesspeople
# Most roads are in Gandhinagar and City Market area
# Footpaths face extinction as they turn into parking lots
# Government accused of ignoring needs of small traders
# It is said space meant for parking has been used for business

BANGALORE: From Monday, 14 city roads will turn into no-parking zones. The announcement by Bangalore city police last week sparked indignant protests and opposition from the residents and businesspeople who are wondering where they may park their vehicles when they leave home and get to work.

Most of these roads are in Gandhinagar, the business and commerce hub of Bangalore, and criss-cross the city market area. Even as a growing vehicle population has nudged the milling pedestrian users off the footpath, and the footpath itself faces extinction (they are the parking lots), there is widespread disenchantment with the way traffic is managed in the city today.

Merchants' plea

The Electrical Merchants Association has accused the Government of being step-motherly in its attitude towards those whose livelihood is centred around this old area of Bangalore. When some information technology (IT) bigwig makes a noise, infrastructure development becomes a worthy cause, but the simple pleas of ordinary, anonymous businessmen and traders who populate this area begs for small improvements to ease the traffic, take the pressure off the overworked policemen, parking ban seems to be the answer, is what most traders are angry about.

Shivajinagar MLA Katta Subramanya Naidu has voiced what most people who have virtually "lost the right to reach their place of work by vehicles" have been fuming about. He wants the plan to be dropped, as this it is not a solution, but moving the problem elsewhere. The burden of parking will now extend to the smaller lanes and crossroads and cause chaos, and destroy the small little isles of smooth pedestrian traffic there as well, he points out.

There is the argument that many of these people have violated building bylaws and used up parking space for business. But what about the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike, which has turned parking facilities into shopping malls, and has a history of turning a blind eye on violations in the more fashionable and posh areas such as M.G. Road, where several multi-storeyed buildings have blithely used up basement parking areas for restaurants and other businesses?

This is surely one instance where public-private partnership could turn out to be a one-size-fits-all solution to a problem that only promises to get worse.