It all
started in May 2008 when a work order was issued to build an underpass at this
junction. Given the traffic density it would have indeed been a great idea, had
the work been done as per plan. It is infact an old story that the project
which was supposed to be completed in Sep 2011 is, I would say, not even half
done as of Jan 2014. We had all gotten so used to alternative routes & struggling
by this junction, that it almost felt normal. But then the magic happened, the
underpass was thrown open! If you have followed the news from 4 days ago, the underpass was now open for two way
traffic. Whoever made that decision, absolutely has no brains at all or wants
to have fun at the cost of people’s despair.
I drew
up a rough sketch of traffic flow so far & now after it was thrown open.
The green flow is traffic from Mekhri Circle to Yeshwanthpur & Green is
traffic flowing from Yeshwanthpur to Malleshwaram. Although the quality of the
road was good enough to save hospital’s labor charges for a pregnant woman, it
was atleast block free and moved steady though slow. After BBMP decided to
exacerbate things on 24th, the traffic towards Malleshwaram was
switched to take the correct lanes and go thru the underpass. VERY VERY WRONG
& BRAINLESS DECISION!
Problem No.1 At the location marked
1 in my image, there is a crossover of traffic which means one side traffic should
be stopped while the other side flows. What is the point of an underpass if you
are doing this? The cross over is super narrow, large vehicles including buses
& trucks go by here and the road quality sucks. Why would anyone want to
bring in an interruption/cross over to a free flowing traffic? Why not just
continue using the part next to BHEL compound? (No.2 in my image)
Problem No.2 At the junction marked
3 in my image, the quality of road is so super awesome that you need a super
truck to get thru! The outcome? Traffic from Yeshwanthpur side drives to the
opposite direction, gets around the challenging part & then enters the
underpass.
And the quality of the build, both
inside the pass thru as well as the road around the construction area, is
something we better not speak of. The fact that BMTC buses are taking
alternative routes in order to avoid driving on this road, even at the cost of
inconveniencing passengers, says it all.
That said on the issues it has
caused, has it helped in any remote way? To Anyone? That’s an insane question anyone
dare ask. Because, there is no new traffic that can now flow thru, Maramma Junction
to CNR Rao Circle still remains closed, CNR Rao circle to Mekhri also remains
closed. So what on earth is this benefitting? Who is it helping? The news articles
quote “Finally some movement”, “Finally some relief” etc. But to whom?
If someone is listening, please
revert the change. There is no fun in leaving the road next to BHEL compound
free (No.2) taking this brainless route. What used to take 30 mins until 24th
now takes more than 1.5 hour!
