No end to the deadlock at Central Business District

Bengaluru: The launch of Namma Metro from M.G Road to Byappanahalli had brought with it hope that it would take the pressure off the roads in the city’s Central Business District. But three years down the line you still see bumper-to-bumper traffic from Trinity Circle to Anil Kumble Circle in peak hours and on weekends, vehicles often spend a good 30 minutes at the signals to merely cross this 1.1 km stretch. 

 

Flanked by commercial buildings , restaurants and luxury hotels,  M.G. Road has been a prominent landmark for decades.  Counted among the broader roads of the city in the past, the Metro has now only succeeded in narrowing it.

 

Its renovated boulevard has proved little compensation for the space that the Metro Rail has occupied. And although the fast train is used by some passengers travelling on the stretch, they are still too few to make a difference to the traffic on the roads. Also, with most commuters depending on  buses or autos to reach a Metro station, they only add to the congestion.

 

Being one of the city’s prime locations, M.G. Road inevitably attracts a huge floating population, and this too adds to the chaotic traffic it sees most days.

 

So bad does the traffic get at times that an auto driver, Shiva Kumar, grumbles he is stranded at the Cauvery Emporium signal for six to eight minutes. “Travelling during peak hours is tiring on this stretch.  When the traffic slows down at the Anil Kumble Circle signal, vehicles are made to wait longer right upto Trinity Circle. On weekends vehicles literally crawl starting from the Anil Kumble Circle signal to Ulsoor. It is a chain effect,” he complains.

 

A suffering commuter, Prashanth.B, points out that the roads are too narrow to accommodate the increasing vehicular population of the city.

 

“With Cubbon Road and Minsk Square  closed to the public the traffic is slow moving and we are forced to take many detours. For instance, vehicles heading from Manipal Centre to Raj Bhavan Road need to take a left turn at BRV Junction to go to Anil Kumble Circle  on M.G. Road. Such deviations have made the road busier than usual. It’s high time the BBMP provides a solution as the Metro Rail may not be fully operational till next year,” he pleads.

 

Despite the poor impact of the Metro Rail so far, Ms Reshma P. of Jeevan Bhima Nagar who frequently visits M.G. Road, has her fingers crossed that it will cut down commuting time when its Phase 1 becomes fully operational.