Traffic crawls to and from GIM

Traffic crawls to and from GIM

Divya Roy. Bangalore

It is a situation Bangaloreans have long grown used to. Each time a major event is organised, the roads choke up. Thursday's experience was no different.
As the Global Investors Meet (GIM) opened at the Palace Grounds, motorists driving through the roads leading to the venue had to wait a long while to get past several stretches.
Traffic policemen were deployed in large numbers, yet they found it difficult to smooth the flow of vehicles on roads leading to the venue of the GIM. Slow-moving traffic was witnessed on all the roads leading to the venue, especially Jayamahal Road and Bellary Road.
"Traffic movement was slow on roads leading to the GIM for nearly four hours. We had to divert vehicles meant for both VIPs and other guests at two entrances," deputy commissioner of police (Traffic West) Panduranga H Rane said.
There were traffic jams on Millers Road, Cunningham Road, and Palace Road too. The service road leading to the Bangalore Palace, next to the Bangalore Development Authority ramp was also congested for several hours.
Bellary Road, which brings vehicles into the city from the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), was the worst hit, as vehicles competed to get to the destination on time. Two hours after the GIM began, the flow of traffic on all these roads eased.
Rane, however, explained that there were no problems, just delays on account of the slackened pace.
"Traffic was diverted on Palace Road and Jayamahal Road. These roads lead to the entrances of the GIM. Traffic was well-managed," he said, adding that the traffic police had received no complaints.