City to get BRTS soon with a few more modifications

City to get BRTS soon with a few more modifications
BY S.M. SHASHI PRASAD
BENGALURU


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Taking cue from the improper planning of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system in New Delhi, state transport officials have brought in a few modifications to the BRTS planned for the city which is expected to be launched shortly.

The state government has recently approved the BRTS at the peripheral areas and Ring road, where dedicated bus lanes will become a reality in the first phase itself.

M.N. Sreehari, traffic expert and advisor to the state government told this newspaper that as a member of the expert committee for the project, he has propposed the state government to accommodate emergency vehicles like fire tenders, ambulances, government vehicles and other important vehicles in the BRTS, so that they can move faster, without disturbing the traffic.

According to Mr Sreehari, the system will have a few modifications. The proposed dedicated bus lane will not be enforced with the available space on the city roads which would further complicate the traffic.

Instead, new lanes will be constructed at certain roads inside the city. “Also, there will not be any traffic snarls at ring roads, as there is adequate space which can be used for BRT purpose,” said Mr Sreehari.

He also said elevated roads would be built at few areas if scarcity of space arises for the construction of new lanes and it will be done without disturbing the existing roads for the BRTS. The road form Majestic to Sayadri road (Maharani College road) and KR Circle to Hudson circle (Nrupathunga road) will be one of the first few roads where the BRT system will be implemented. Especially on these stretches, at least one BMTC bus is seen moving every six seconds, and also considering that the bus stops are located on the left side of the road, it will be one of the prime locations for BRT system.

“First the auto lane was run on a trial basis in the city and now it has no takers. But if BRTS is introduced with strict modifications, it will be useful and is expected to ease the traffic situation in the city,” said a senior traffic police officer.

“Accommodating emergency vehicles, which always need first attention in the BRT, is a good idea. It will not only segregate the emergency vehicles in the traffic to reach faster, but it also will help them to reach on time to save life and property,” he added.