The slow pace of work

Sorry state

The Lingarajapuram Flyover is one of the three main thoroughfares connecting the core areas of the City to the northeastern suburbs. The flyover is not only narrow but it has also been made into a two-way such that  traffic on both directions is chock-a-block almost all the time and motorists rue that they have to spend at least half hour or more to move from one side to the other.

Adding to the woes are the roads leading to the flyover, which have been widened and left unattended. The numerous potholes not only slow down the smooth traffic flow but also pose a danger to two-wheeler riders.

Although, Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has done some patchwork by filling the potholes on some of the roads across the City, there seems to be no respite from bumpy rides for Bengalureans, with vast swathes of the City still pockmarked with potholes. Zaffar Sait, a 65-year-old resident of Richards Town, who has been living in the vicinity since he was five years old says that he has seen the area change a lot.

 Zaffar points out that when St Charles High School, near the flyover, is functional, most of the traffic slows down. “The authorities must consider constructing an underpass just in front of the school. This will  not only help the children cross over but also the citizens. The construction of the underpass near the railway line has been going on for the last three years and the construction of the Hennur Flyover is stuck. All this adds to the congestion,” he reasons.

Anitha Krishnan, a resident of Kammanahalli and a professional, says that she has to travel to the central part of the City for work on a daily basis and has to leave home at least two hours in advance to clock into her workplace on time. “You don’t expect to see a traffic jam on a flyover but Lingarajapuram seems to have one all the time. It’s hell to get across the jam and as a regular commuter, you have to be willing to spend (read lose) precious time on the flyover,” she reasons.

Despite multiple problems plaguing this flyover, the authorities seem to have turned a blind eye, leaving hapless commuters to battle endless traffic blocks.

Question them and they always seem to have ready-made answers to all the queries but don’t seem to have a solution in sight. KT Nagaraja, superintendent engineer of road works, BBMP, points out that a few roads have been identified for tarring and rectification work.

“Since it is the rainy season, civil work comprising drain repair and footpath laying will be carried out before the actual tarring is done,” claims Nagaraja. He further states that jelly and jelly powder with cement are being mixed with tar and then slapped on the road. “This will strengthen the road,” he adds. He says the sudden unexpected downpour has delayed a lot of pending civil work.

Every nook and cranny of the City has roads that are filled with potholes. Two-wheeler riders are the worst affected and find it difficult to negotiate past the potholes, given that some are deep enough to suck them in. When it rains, potholes turn into cesspools, making it difficult for riders to calculate its depth.

According to Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic), B Dayananda, two-wheeler riders form almost 75 per cent of the total vehicles in the City and he concedes that accidents caused by potholes are increasing at a steady pace.

“Increasing potholes are a major hindrance to the smooth flow of traffic and lead to a traffic pile-up. We find it difficult to manage traffic on such roads. In a bid to avoid the potholes, two-wheeler riders tend to cross the path of another vehicle, leading to accidents,” Dayananda signs off.