Train journeys bring relief to daily commuters and reduce traffic jams on many busy roads in the City
For software professionals, routine work hours stretch from 6 am to 10 pm. As IT parks expand the boundaries of the City steadily, travelling for 5-6 hours a day has become inevitable for them. Most of the multinational companies are located on the City outskirts and there are numerous people like Satyanarayana T, employee of an MNC at Whitefield, who travel from one end of the City to the other, daily.
Satyanarayana’s day begins at 7 am. From then on, he budgets every minute of his work day. He leaves home for work at 7 am from Nagarbhavi, takes a bus to Majestic, hops onto the Chennai-bound train by 8 am, gets off at Whitefield and takes a bus from there to reach his office on time.
In the evening, he packs up early to reach the Whitefield station before 7 pm. He takes the Chennai-Bangalore train at 7 pm and then travels by bus from Majestic to Nagarbhavi. By the time he reaches home, it is almost 9 pm. On days when he misses either of the trains, his routine turns topsy-turvy, as travelling by bus takes double the time travelling in a train.
Satyanarayana’s routine speaks for a large section of professionals who spend a major chunk of their time travelling every day.
A commuter rail service connecting major junctions in the City would be of great help to this population and reduce volume of traffic. Nagarabhavi, Nayandahalli and surrounding areas are close to the existing railway line between Bangalore and Mysore. Satyanarayana says that for him, travelling to Kengeri station is much more practical than travelling till Majestic. A commuter train from Kengeri to Whitefield would make his life easier, he feels.
Another passenger, Subhash Srinivas Murthy, developed health problems because of long hours of travelling in buses. “I travel from Magadi Road to Whitefield. I developed severe asthma as the Volvo buses from Majestic to Whitefield are air conditioned. I would be in the bus for at least three hours daily.”
After he came to know about the Chennai trains, travelling, he says, has become a bit easier and quicker. Other routes used by many people are the Yelahanka-Whitefield, Yelahanka-Hosur, Kengeri-Hebbal, Hebbal-Electronics City, and other places. The existing railway routes such as Hebbal-Banaswadi-Baiyappanahalli-Bellandur, Yelahanka-KR Puram-Bellandur, Banaswadi-KR Puram-Whitefield are a few lines that can be connected further for the benefit of passengers travelling to areas around these junctions, say regular commuters.
Rithesh Swamy lives near the Yelahanka Railway Station. Yet, his travel to ITPL is cumbersome as there are no connecting trains till ITPL from Yelahanka during peak office hours. The KR Puram, Hebbal and Marathahalli junctions are chock-a-block with vehicles in peak hours. A well-networked commuter rail will provide some respite, say passengers.
Explaining how train journeys bring relief to daily commuters, Runa Sengupta, HR manager at a Hosur-based company, says she has been able to hire many people after she told them about the Yeshwantpur-Hosur passenger train.
“Job applicants from North Bangalore (Hebbal and Mathikere) hesitate to take up jobs in Hosur as they are overwhelmed by the thought of travelling for long hours in buses. But when I tell them about the train services, they are relieved. Imagine if this could be provided within the City. It would reduce traffic and travel time for most people,” says Sengupta.
She stays in KR Puram and takes an autorickshaw every morning to Banaswadi. From there, she travels by the Yeshwantpur-Hosur train to her office. If only there was a well-connected, inexpensive mode of transport like the commuter rail service, Sengupta says she can use her energy better to focus on work rather than exhaust it on travel.