BENGALURU : Traffic cops have earned a bad rep for towing vehicles, but they counter that Bengaluru drivers flout parking rules routinely. The drivers also give the most imaginative excuses for parking in reserved spaces. The cops have heard excuses ranging from ‘my wife is in the passenger seat’ for occupying a space reserved for women drivers to ‘I have a stomach ache’ to occupy space reserved for the differently-abled.
City Express took a walk down Commercial Street and Brigade Road, and found many such violations. Traffic cops posted along this stretch say that people mostly do this because they are not aware of the rules. "We often see male drivers in the women's parking area and they say that there is a woman in the passenger seat," says distraught traffic cop, Manjunatha MH, of Commercial Street. His colleague, who did not wish to be named, adds, "No matter how many times we tell the drivers here, they don't listen. Instead, they blame us for everything when there is a traffic block anywhere".
On Brigade Road, cops have heard the oddest reasons for driving into slots for the differently-abled. “People pretend to be handicapped and we cannot really check them because we'll be called insensitive. A few drivers have even told us that they have a stomach ache or that their passenger has a headache," says a cop posted here. Then, there are men who say that they are just waiting “for five minutes” for their driver-wives, who are shopping. "Then, she does return and the husband drives away," says an exasperated cop.
Anupam Agarwal, DCP Traffic (East), says that the department has conducted rallies in colleges and schools to bring more awareness about traffic rules in the city. Yet, the city has collected hundreds of crores in fines last year, which is the highest compared to any other city in the country.
“The fines are just `100 and `300, which means little to people. They pay that amount over following rules,” says Anupam.What about people bending the law with unbelievable excuses? “What can we do,” he asks, adding, “We do fine them, but the amount does not seem to bother them". In the East zone, 100 to 130 vehicles are towed away a week. Anupam makes an amusing comparison: “We are like Tom and Jerry, cops chase the violators, but they manage to escape.”
instructions and guards?
Shreyasi, student, says, “Twice on MG Road, I couldn’t find parking space because a shopkeeper had parked his vehicle at the space reserved for women, he refused to budge. A security guard is meant to prevent such misuse but I have never seen such a person posted there".
Sharath M, Para-swimmer, says that parking on Comm Street is “very difficult”. “Reserved spots in several areas of the city are taken," he says.
Deepa Narasimhan, head of diversity and inclusion at an MNC, says, "Reserved parking is to help the differently-abled get easy access to a venue. When that is misused, we have to go searching for a different parking area. These slots have to be marked out clearly and cops have to be briefed on what qualifies as disability."