IT pros on a MISSION

IT pros on a MISSION
Tired of traffic jams en route to office, companies form an association to tackle junctions along the Marathahalli-Sarjapur stretch of ORR
A T Subrahmanya | TNN

Bangalore: Enough is enough, time to do something, said employees of private companies along the Outer Ring Road (ORR). It was a struggle to reach office on time, and the authorities were doing little about the burgeoning traffic on the ORR.
Taking a cue from the Electronic City initiative, IT pros have now taken a major initiative to clear the several junctions along the ORR. Starting Monday, wardens in reflective jackets will be stationed here, armed with walkie-talkies and other gear. The traffic police, no doubt, are happy.
Employees of offices situated in and around the Marathahalli-Sarjapur stretch on ORR have formed an organization called ORRCA (Outer Ring Road Companies Association). This stretch houses more than 40 private companies —mostly IT and ITES companies — and is choked with traffic. Seetharam Vishwanath, a member of ORRCA, said around 40 employees of different companies gathered around five months ago and contacted additional commissioner of police (traffic & security) Praveen Sood, who encouraged them to take up the cause, in which the police and public were partners.
A month ago, the members gathered again and prepared a rough draft on the possible measures. When they had sent the letters to the companies, asking them to participate, 18 companies gave their consent for the association. They then tied up with a vendor called Guardwell, who will provide 42 traffic wardens to man the traffic between the HSR BDA Complex and Marathahalli junction. If the project proves successful, the employees will extend it to the Tin Factory junction.
These companies will form a corpus fund through monthly fees/donations paid by each company and it will be used to meet the operational costs of the traffic wardens’ salaries, jackets, walkietalkies and other gear.
Vishwanath said there are nine junctions on this stretch — the major ones being the HSR-BDA Complex junction, Agara junction, Iblur junction, Bellandur junction and DB junction. The 42 traffic wardens will work in two shifts and will have a control room headed by a supervisor who will give standing instructions to the wardens. “Traffic control is our immediate concern but in the near future, the organization intends to take care of the service roads adjoining the ring road, so that traffic can flow more smoothly. In the long run, we also plan to take up cleaning of roads and e-waste management,’’ added Vishwanath.
POOLING IN
Employees of offices situated in and around the Marathahalli-Sarjapur stretch on ORR have formed an organization Vendor Guardwell will provide 42 traffic wardens to man the traffic between the HSR BDA Complex and Marathahalli junction If successful, the employees will extend the project to the Tin Factory junction The traffic wardens will work in two shifts and have a control room More the better
ACP traffic (East), V Srinivas Murthy, who was present when the initiative was inaugurated on Thursday, said it was not possible for a single constable to man the junction, and this initiative would help reduce the burden on the traffic police. He also pointed out that with increased manpower, it would be easy to handle peakhour traffic. The ORRCA initiative will kick-start on Friday, where the wardens will be taught the nuances of handling traffic by the police. They will start functioning from Monday.