Road to Tech Park is paved with problems

Road to Tech Park is paved with problems

Overflowing drains turn the stretch into a slushy pool and buses carrying techies often reach the destination late

Arunima Rajan



International Tech Park Limited (ITPL) in Whitefield may be a landmark on the city's road to future. But the narrow stretches leading to its campus takes the city backward.
The service road leading to ITPL's side gate is filled with mud and stones dumped by eateries to get the stretch levelled as hundreds of vehicles carrying employees and visitors run over them. With the arrival of monsoon, the road has become slushy. As buses wade past, pedestrians run for cover to save their dress from the mud spray.
What is more serious and disturbing is the confusion created by a maze of BMTC buses and call centre vehicles parked bumper-to-bumper near some leading IT companies. ITPL could be a soft target for terrorists as they can sneak into any unmanned vehicle with explosives. The authorities have done nothing to clear these vehicles from the area.
The main road is the life line to the IT companies in Whitefield and EPIP (Export Promotion Industrial Park) area. Although the road near EPIP is in a fairly good condition, during peak hours, the jam from Graphite Junction to Sri Sathya Sai make vehicles crawl. The BMTC buses plying this area regularly arrive late with IT employees.
The bad condition of the road is responsible for the irregular timing of the public transport system. Despite the high number of Vayu Vajra buses deployed in the area, it is difficult to commute during peak hours. This explains why the first bus from ITPL starts only at 8am.
"The government wants more and more malls and flyovers, but nobody is bothered about the hapless commuter. If they want to make the city better, they should first improve the condition of roads," says Prasad A, a commuter.
When it rains, even the stretch in EPIP area gets flooded and commuting becomes difficult. The drain works here were abandoned in the middle and the completed portion of the drain overflows as it cannot carry so much rain water.
The motorists are irked by the indifference of the authorities.
Gilu NG, a software engineer says, "The complaints of the motorists and residents keep falling on deaf ears. The quality of the road network of the ITPL is very bad. When it rains, it is extremely difficult to commute on these roads."
The construction work of numerous apartments under way in the area has also contributed its share for the bad condition of roads. Construction materials often fall off from the trucks heading to these sites and nobody bothers to clear them. —Arunima Rajan