Road-widening? Try parking ban instead

Road-widening? Try parking ban instead

Experts suggest easy and instant solutions to the problems that the BBMP is facing

Bosky Khanna. Bangalore



Ban parking by the roadsides instead of resorting to the cumbersome process of road widening by claiming properties of citizens, experts say.
They say civic amenities (CA) sites in each locality can be used for parking. This will create additional space for vehicles to move on the roads and automatically solve the problem of traffic congestion.
Noted environmentalist AN Yellappa Reddy says that over 40% of roads, including Race Course Road, JC Road and Ashoka Pillar Road, have turned into parking lots.
"The government does not seem to learn from its past mistakes and is repeating the same. A study by us over a year ago on Nimhans Road, Hosur Road, JP Nagar and Bannerghatta Road, showed that by taking off bus lane and parking space, vehicular congestion was reduced by 30%."
Pointing out that even multi-level car parking system had failed to catch the fancy of Bangaloreans, traffic expert and Agenda for Bangalore Infrastructure Development (ABIDe) member MN Sreehari says Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and traffic police should prohibit parking on roads, and instead develop CA sites for parking.