Nightmare on the IBLUR STRETCH

Nightmare on the IBLUR STRETCH
It’s all about mishaps and muggings on the dark, lonely stretch between Agara junction and HSR Layout: There are no proper dividers or streetlights and the road is covered with mud and sand
SAHANA CHARAN


Last week, a young techie working in a reputed tech firm in Whitefield was returning home when his bike skidded on the Iblur road stretch, badly injuring his knee. A few months ago, the same stretch, between Agara Junction and the start of HSR Layout near Jakkasandra, was also in the news when an IBM staffer died in an accident here.
For motorists, especially two-wheeler riders, this stretch is now a death trap. The road has no streetlights and the temporary median is often cast aside by drivers of trucks and other heavy vehicles that ferry sand and construction debris to nearby sites. What’s more, the haphazardly-placed stones for the divider makes it dangerous for motorists, especially at night.
WEEKLY AFFAIR
“Almost every week, there is an accident on this road, mostly because motorists can’t see the mud and stones and are blinded by oncoming traffic. Moreover, trucks carrying construction debris move freely across the dividers and are a nuisance for other road-users,” says Lokesh, a cab driver.
MUGGINGS TOO
The lack of streetlights also makes this stretch notorious for muggings, said another resident who did not wish to be named.
“This road is deserted at night except for the passing vehicles as there are no houses on either side of the road,” he said. As a result, two-wheeler riders and other passers-by become easy targets.
COMPLAINTS, NO EFFECT
Some residents of Sarjapur Road have complained to the authorities about the danger zone but there’s been no action like either setting right the dividers or changing the streetlights.
”We have made several representations to the BDA and BBMP to set right the median and penalise those who are removing the dividing stones but nothing has happened. They constructed a median only recently but that was only for a certain stretch. The rest of the road has been neglected. There have been a spate of accidents on that road, mostly due to skidding,” says S Vishwanath, general secretary of the Outer Ring Road Companies Association.
He said ORRCA security guards manning the Agara junction often put back the dividing stones but drivers of heavy vehicles keep moving them every time.
4-MONTH WAIT...
Prof M N Sreehari, advisor to the government of Karnataka on traffic, transport and infrastructure, said that the stretch was a danger zone.
”Since construction of the Agara-Iblur flyovers are on, there is lot of chaos there.The BBMP will set right the road once the work is over.That is why only temporary medians have been put. The work should get over in four months, after which permanent dividers will be constructed. But I agree the road should at least be lit up properly,” he said.