The job of an ambulance driver in Bangalore has definitely turned more stressful than before, given the rise in traffic. With bursts of intense and heart pounding moments, a typical day in the life of an ambulance driver is indeed tough.
Rangaraj, who has been an ambulance driver attached to CTC Sanjeevini from past three years, travels at least 50 kms in and around the city every day.
“Whatever tension is going on behind us in the van, our concentration is on the road as we try our best to reach the respective hospital as fast as possible. People who are with us, completely depend on us to save a person’s life,” says Rangaraj, who also states that there are delays because of the traffic. “We can’t even cross 60 kms due to serious traffic problems,” he says.
Shivakumar, who has been working as an ambulance driver for 10 years now with CTC Sanjeevini sometimes gets stressed with the flow of traffic in Bangalore city.
“It has become very difficult for us to drive on city roads during peak hours. Though we have sirens and horns which can be heard at a distance of 1 km, there are people who would not want to violate traffic rules only because the police on the other side will catch them for jumping the signal. They are not aware of the exact condition of the patient. On top of that, we have some two-wheelers and auto rickshaw drivers who argue with us if by mistake their vehicle is brushed while passing by,” he says.
Recalling his past days, Shivakumar reveals, “Eight years ago, it used to take half an hour to reach from Hoskote to Nimhans. But now it takes at least an hour to reach the place. Metro construction has also affected the movement as it leads to one way and round about traffic.”
Prabhakar of Anytime Anywhere Ambulance service from Ulsoor owns 5 ambulances along with his brothers and has been running the service from past 11 years.
He says. “My father started this ambulance service which we brothers have taken over to serve mankind.
But with the traffic menace, it has become very difficult for us to move out of the choc-o-block traffic junctions. And it is more difficult especially during peak hours from 9 am to 12 pm in the morning and from 5 pm to 9 pm in the evening.”