BANGALORE: On the last day of the Road Safety Week being observed by the Bangalore Police, T Sunil Kumar, Additional Commissioner of Police (L&O) stated that the city is surviving on roads built back in the time of Kempegowda and were suffering under the barrage of vehicles. “Forty lakh vehicles travel on Bangalore’s roads with a population of 80 lakhs, our roads are not adequate,” he said during the valedictory programme organised by the Transport Department.
Using a novel method of appealing to the public, the top cop appealed to children to keep reminding their parents about road safety rules. “People need to be shamed into following traffic rules. They do not heed to rules unless stopped by a policeman. Even then, they argue and try to threaten their way out of it,” he said adding that the need of the hour was to bring a change in the attitude of commuters towards rules and police.
Advising traffic violators who regularly drive on footpaths, Sunil Kumar said, “The maximum time you will save by driving on the footpath is not more than 5 minutes. It is safe to drive on the road and ensure the safety of everyone involved.” Transport commissioner T Sham Bhat stressed the need to include citizens for better road safety. “Our roads today cannot handle the rise in the number of vehicles, there needs to be a joint effort by all civic agencies to tackle this issue,” he said.
He stated that agencies like the PWD, BBMP and BDA must use the resources to work on the infrastructure of the city.