Multiple agencies make Bangalore traffic lose its way

Multiple agencies make Bangalore traffic lose its way

Anil Kumar Sastry

We should have an umbrella agency with statutory powers to co-ordinate and deal with mobility and locomotion

There is not much coordination among the agencies

The BMLTA has not done much except hold a few meetings

— Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

Lack of coordination: The traffic police were unaware of the reconstruction of a road culvert at the Residency Road-Brigade Road Junction in Bangalore leading to chaos on the road.

BANGALORE: Scene 1: Saturday, November 8. Users of Residency Road, Brigade Road and adjoining roads, already inured to slow-moving traffic, found their tempers slowly reaching boiling point when they were reduced to a crawl right from morning. Only upon reaching the Residency Road-Brigade Road Junction, did they come to know that the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) had taken up reconstruction of a road culvert. Even the traffic police appeared to have been kept unawares by the BBMP. Scene 2: Drivers are waiting patiently at a traffic signal. But this is not at a road intersection but slam bang on a flyover. Bangalore has the distinction of the only metro having a traffic intersection on a flyover: at Richmond Circle. Often criticised by traffic engineers, the direction of traffic was changed on this flyover after the Richmond and Residency Roads were made one-way. Scene 3: Some Rs. 2 crore of the tax payers’ money can be saved every year in fuel due to signal-free movement at the intersection of K.R. Road and Vani Vilas Road, claimed the then Basavanagudi MLA K. Chandrashekhar in support of his pet project — the contentious National College Flyover. However, this claim is dampened somewhat with the presence of two traffic signals flanking the flyover — near the Vasavi institutions and North Road — and the scanty traffic on the flyover. Scene 4: The Infantry Road and Raj Bhavan Roads are one-ways. It is “No entry” for Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) buses on Infantry Road between IAS Officers’ Association and Coffee Board Junction and buses from the Malleswaram side are forced to take a circuitous route via Miller’s Road and Queen’s Road to reach Shivajinagar. Scene 5: The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) builds a bus station near Bapujinagar on Mysore Road. There is no ramp or flyover for buses from the Mysore-side to enter the terminal or from the terminal to enter the Mysore Road towards the city, leading to frequent pileup on Mysore Road.
Multiple agencies

While the BBMP and Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) build and maintain roads and related infrastructure, the Transport Department regulates vehicle registration and driving licences besides issuing permits to taxis and autorickshaws. The traffic police regulate traffic movement and fine violators. The BMTC and Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) operate buses while BMRCL plans Metro routes and eventually operate Metro Rail.

Thus, there are a host of agencies dealing with one single issue — mobility or transport. However, the lack of, or just a cursory coordination between these agencies, which work “for” the Bangaloreans has made commuting within the city a misery.
Only in name

Sensing the need for an umbrella organisation to deal with urban mobility and mandated by the National Urban Transport Policy, the State Government formed the Bangalore Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) in March 2007. The notification forming the Authority said all land transport systems, excluding the railways, within the BBMP could be brought under the purview of BMLTA.

While the Chief Secretary is Chairman of the Authority, heads of various utility agencies are the members. Since its formation, all the Authority has done is hold a few meetings; not much coordination has been done. This is because the Authority lacks a full-time chief executive and urban transport specialists in the required numbers.
Statutory powers

However, things appear to be moving in the right direction with the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) circulating the draft statute among all the stakeholders recently. DULT Commissioner Gaurav Gupta told The Hindu that a decision to offer statutory backing to BMLTA would be taken soon.

Apart from statutory backing, there is a need for technical capacity building by way of appointing people with necessary technical skills to deal with urban transport and planning. Though BMLTA will be the nodal agency and takes the final decision, extensive prior consultation will be held with all stakeholders.

Chief Secretary Sudhakar Rao said the Government was serious in having an umbrella agency with statutory powers to deal with mobility for Bangalore.