Leaky bridges cause traffic gridlocks

Leaky bridges cause traffic gridlocks
Prathima Nandakumar | TNN

Bangalore: How often have you been sprinkled with water from a leaky railway bridge? Neglected girder bridges at Kino Theatre, Okalipuram, Coles Park, Tannery Road, Jnana Bharathi entrance, Jeevanahalli and Benniganahalli with their persistent flooding of pathway and leaking roofs are adding to traffic jams all along the grids.
Both the BBMP and South Western Railway (SWR) will tell you it is their responsibility, but only partially. If SWR is to fix the leak, the BBMP’s look-out would be the flooding problem.
“Rain halts the traffic near Kino Theatre due to water-logging under the bridge and a leaking roof. We don’t know if there is a drainage system at all. There’s debris dumped in the canal, which could be obstructing free flow of water,’’ said Kumar, who runs a canteen nearby.
At Okalipuram bridge, motorists swerve dangerously to avoid water trickling from the roof.
A missing drain and potholed road under the bridge hold the traffic to ransom. “The bulk of traffic cannot pass through easily as the width of the vent is inadequate and the road is also curved. A bad road and flooding causes traffic jams and it deters us from plying here,’’ admits Rajanna, an autorickshaw driver.
Strangely, the city continues to have 8-10 girder bridges, which are more than 30 years old. All of them pose a similar problem.
Sadly, there is no proposal for remodelling or replacement of the bridges. Reason: The design of girder bridges is found to be better suited for places with space constraints.
Said a senior SWR official: “We cannot replace all girder bridges with a concrete bridge as we cannot achieve vertical clearance. Though we can go in for a box-pushing type of bridge, as it can be built without disturbing train traffic. For instance, we have replaced them at Windsor Manor junction and Cantonment Railway station. For now, we can plug the leakage in the roofs.’’
The BBMP claims that flooding is because the drainage system is old with limited capacity. Moreover, maintenance of these bridges has no special allocation. The problem at the Rajajinagar entrance underpass is a little different.
The connecting road — Vatal Nagaraj Road — suffers from swelling sewage lines (near MEI Polytechnic), which gets worse during the rain.
“The road is undulating and the underpass has a bad curve. When it rains, traffic piles up even at the underpass as the roads are flooded,’’ said V P Pathi, a local businessman.
Grid Relief?
Gridlocked traffic in Majestic will soon be history if the BBMP succeeds in drawing up a good plan. One proposal mooted by its projects wing is a four-lane corridor from Okalipuram bridge to Rajajinagar entrance underpass. The 1-km-long carriageway will be signal-free, which means you can bypass five existing signals. “We are acquiring 12,800 sqm from the Railways,’’ said a BBMP engineer.
“Soon after a feasibility study, we’ll call for tenders to carry out traffic studies. The corridor can be extended up to West of Chord road in the next phase,’’ he added.