Not grand plans, all we need is simple plans executed well: V Ravichander

The city seems to be a mess with lopsided plans and abysmal solutions for traffic management. And then there is its fourth comprehensive development plan (CDP). Will it make a difference or do we need to look at things more closely? If no concrete steps are taken to address the issues of traffic and infrastructure, the city could be on its way to becoming unamanageable said civic evangelist, V. Ravichander.

V. Ravichander has a lot to say on  the nuances of urban infrastructure and the lopsided working of the government. "For me it’s about both hard and soft infrastructure. The hard bit is the physical infrastructure like roads, traffic, garbage management, water and sanitation. But a city comes alive in its public spaces, its parks, playgrounds, lakes, around the arts, culture and so on. This is equally important for a vibrant Bengaluru," stresses Ravichander.

The current urban planning does not please him. "Our city planning is characterised by the absence of  scientific inputs or sensitivity to the requirements of the ordinary citizen. We have too much concrete! There are basic problems of mobility, garbage, water and sanitation that needs fixing. We don’t need grand plans. Just simple stuff executed well," he goes on.

To him the commuter rail makes a great deal of sense. "It is simple common sense that we need to sweat our existing assets and the commuter rail is a prime example of an underutilised asset that can help  many travellers. But it involves the Railways, who own the asset and the state government that needs it. And the two are finding it difficult to collaborate to make it happen."

What about the city's traffic management? "It is a veritable mess. Traffic management done by the police depends on traffic engineering that is done by the BBMP and BDA and compliance by transport operators like BMTC and motorists. All of them have failed in their roles and the resultant woes are visible on our streets every day," he notes despondently.

So what long term plans does the government need to focus on to ease traffic ? "I would focus on building 1500 kms of walkable footpaths. That’s the place to start. Distances of upto 3 kms can easily be done on foot given the weather. Then we need to invest in public transport, particularly buses that carry about half the daily traffic. I would encourage private bus aggregators, which could be run by the BMTC. The commuter rail can give considerable relief while the Metro Rail acts as the mass transit backbone," he suggests.

What about the city's fourth comprehensive development plan (CDP), which will define land use for its sprawl till 2031?  He responds with disdain, "The secrecy over CDP 2031 is unwarranted. We need to ensure that it is not another land use plan like the last three CDPs, which have made Bengaluru what it is today through rampant, uncontrolled, poorly planned growth. We need a plan that is dynamic and not  static. We should set out guiding principles for sustainable mobility, waste management, water, environment, energy and the like. These principles should guide future developments and be flexible to accommodate emergent needs. It should plan for large scale strategic projects. We need to go back to a ‘live and work nearby’ model that existed during the heydays of the public sector units like HAL, ITI, BEL."

"All the signs are that we spend money inefficiently on our civic works. Wrong priorities ( we don’t need a steel flyover), poor plans, followed by lousy execution with no aesthetics in our public works, are all ruining our city."