Traffic crawl: Bellandur residents to form human chain today

BENGALURU: Residents of Bellandur will stage a silent protest and form a human chain on Tuesday to highlight traffic problems in and around their locality. They want BBMP to stop granting permission for new constructions near work-leisure district RMZ Ecoworld.
"It takes over 45 minutes to cover a 1.5-km stretch between Iblur and Bellandur main bus sto p. If new constructions come up, our miseries will only multiply. The civic body needs to fix the existing road before allowing more development works," said Tushar Kapila, a resident.
The nightmarish crawl during peak hours is forcing people to get out of cabs midway and walk to their offices. "We've no alternative roads for traffic to spread out and BBMP has no plans to widen these stretches to ease the current situation," Tushar rued.
"Bellandur may be an IT hub, but absence of proper public transport has resulted in private vehicles contributing to heavy traffic density," said Parthasarathy K, another resident.
The worry of residents and officegoers also stems from the fact that Namma Metro is expected to start work on one of its proposed corridors in the area. "More than 50 trucks ferry construction material on this road every day, causing half of the snarls," a traffic police officer said.
Shankar Narayanan, a private company employee, said those working in private companies with offices in RMZ-Ecoworld spend 25 minutes to cover one-km distance in their cars. "It has become a challenge for us to retain our employees because they are constantly complaining about traffic in the locality," he added.
Senior citizens are also at the receiving end, especially during medical emergencies, as ambulances stuck in traffic jams are a common sight. To avoid the mess, schoolbuses pick up children at 6.30am, two hours before classes start.
"My son is exhausted by the time he comes back home and cannot focus on studies," said Parvathy R, a homemaker.