Roads are for pedestrians also

Roads are for pedestrians also

Traffic rules must be enforced to Maintain a good road culture

The city requires as many traffic engineers as its number of wards

Vaishalli Chandra. Bangalore
Bangalore's traffic woe has been a prime concern for the civic authorities as well as the common man for quite sometime now.
While the rule of 'one-way traffic' was introduced to ease the heavy movement, the authorities have hardly taken in to consideration the convenience of the pedestrians. A greater vehicular movement automatically meant that pedestrians had to wait for long hours to cross the streets.
Vinoba Sunder Singh, director, traffic engineering and transportation planning, Wilbur Smith Associates, says that the pedestrians cannot be ignored, "Let's not forget that pedestrians are also using the roads so their convenience should be given equal weightage as the vehicles."
The picture is however not all gloomy. There are several areas in the city that have well planned footpaths for the pedestrians; they are enclosed by railings to prevent the walkers from straying on to the roads. These footpaths lead to the main road only near signals, so that people can cross roads safely. Even though these roads are slightly raised, unlike a speed breaker they are flat, allowing pedestrians to walk easily. Such roads reduce the chance of accidents. So the solution lies in, as Vinoba says, "in having more such footpaths."Areas like Koromangla, Cunnigham road, Jayanagar have some good footpaths in Bangalore.
Vinoba also suggests that there is a need for, "comprehensive mobility plans instead of a comprehensive transport plan." Having worked in other countries, he says that the pedestrian index is "pathetically low in the city as compared to any other global city."
With a large number of people still opting for the public transport, Vinoba says that the need is even more to have good footpaths for pedestrians. "Buses don't leave you at your door steps, hence the need for better footpaths," he explains.
He says it could be a win-win situation if the pedestrian conditions are improved; then more people will opt public transport. He adds that while there are several problems at the policy making level that often ignore pedestrians' cause, the problems are compounded by the fact that already existing solutions aren't well utilised. This is mainly because the public is often ignorant about these things.
For instance the city has pelican signals which can be operated by pedestrians. One needs to press the button and after a few seconds, the signal turns green, allowing pedestrians to cross the road. These signals are time coordinated.
Then there are raised flat crossings or speed breakers, which according to Vinoba are a good option; he adds, "The footpaths need railing which will open in to the main road only at the designated crossing." Doing so, he says, it can be ensured that pedestrians won't cut across the roads.
That brings us to another issue of serious concern — that of enforcement. Vinoba says, 'It isn't that we are not educated about traffic rules. It is about enforcing those rules in a manner that it becomes a habit to follow those set rules while walking on the roads."
The three E's — Engineering, Education and Enforcement are crucial as far as imbibing a healthy road culture is concerned.
Signs boards are a good way to enforce rules. But, the problem in India is that very few people pay heed to those boards. "One of my engineers who has worked in America told me that a sign should demand respect, but how many people really pay any notice to the sign boards?" Vinoba asked.
Vinoba also feels that there should be as many traffic engineers as there are wards in the city. "Traffic engineering is tough. There are as many as 24 lakh vehicles on the road. But there aren't enough traffic engineers. We need traffic engineers to ensure that what ever road projects are undertaken, is carried out scientifically."