It’s one ‘hell’ of a ride!

It’s one ‘hell’ of a ride!
Deccan Herald

Bangalore’s journey to becoming an IT capital has been one smooth ride. This might sound a little exaggerated, but it holds true if one compares it to the roads IT professionals have to take to reach International Technology Park Limited (ITPL) at Whitefield every day.

Over two lakh commuters use IT Park Road, the stretch connecting Whitefield and Airport Road, battling for space with heavy lorries on semi-tarred roads.

The road turns out to be a hard task master for hapless drivers, who have to manoeuvre through muddy mountains and dirty troughs to reach their workplace. To make things worse, the roads are narrow, and incapable of handling the huge traffic density, especially during peak morning and evening hours.

Most motorists resort to riding on one side of the road, resulting in massive jams that can sometimes take over an hour to clear. Driving over two-feet deep potholes, that are liberally scattered on the seven kilometre stretch, may feel like an amusement ride, except the action is not very amusing!

“Travelling to work is difficult, I am tired even before I reach my cubicle. In fact, many of my colleagues quit and joined other companies which are located in central parts of Bangalore, because they could not deal with the pathetic state of the roads,” says Sunil, a call centre executive at America Online.

Meanwhile, Ramachandra of Tata Consultancy Services leaves his new Honda City at home and takes the company bus, because he does not want to spoil his car.

“I bought the car so that my journey to work gets easier. But driving on this road is more stressful than dealing with a work-related emergency,” he quips.

Water stagnation on the road is another problem, and road users say they have to depend on evaporation to clear the watery mess. “There is no drainage and no maintenance. This road could count as the worst road in the city,” complains Anand of Misys International.

‘Concerned’ authorities, are you listening?