No ban on vehicles on Brigade Road, say police

No ban on vehicles on Brigade Road, say police

The Hindu
Restrictions are imposed only when the traffic is heavy: police official

BANGALORE: The city police on Saturday clarified that there was no ban on the movement of vehicles on Brigade Road on weekends.

Brushing aside reports appearing a section of press that the police would restrict traffic movement on the road starting from Saturday, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic-East) M.A. Saleem said the police clamped restrictions only when the road got jammed because of heavy movement of vehicles.

"We place barricades and divert traffic on other roads. Vehicles are allowed to move on the road when the traffic flow is normal. This is what we do on other roads also," Mr. Saleem said.

He said generally the traffic flow was heavy during weekends. There was no move to make Brigade Road a pedestrian walkway, he said.

The Brigade's Shops and Establishments Association, which installed the city's first parking meters on the northern stretch of the road two years ago, said the restrictions might not be necessary because it had enough attendants to regulate parking and also to ensure free movement of other vehicles, with the help of the police.

"We have prevented double parking and jaywalking on the road and regulated parking outside the gate of Rex theatre," Suhail Yusuff, secretary of the association, said.

Shops and establishments on Brigade Road, Mr. Yusuff said, were not in favour of restricting traffic on the road during weekends.

"Most of our business is on weekends and we don't want shoppers looking around for parking space and lose business.''

The police had to provide alternative parking space nearby, if they want to regulate movement of vehicles on the road, Mr. Yusuff said.