Experts focus on improving transport facilities in city

Traveling 40 km in one hour with maximum of two change overs across different modes of transport may seem like a distant dream for those in the city, but with the right effort, there are solutions that could work, according to panelists of a discussion on mobility.

The panelists were Sir Edward Lister, Deputy Mayor, London, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, founder and chairperson Biocon and Sivasailam, MD, BMRCL.

Organised by Janaagraha, a NGO, and the British High Commission, as part of a peer learning efforts between London and Bangalore, the discussion sought to throw light on the similar challenges faced by the two cities.  An important contributor to London’s transformation to its present state was the decision to integrate all modes of transport under the Transport for London, something that Bangalore urgently needed to do, some  panelists said.

“Transport integrated planning is new in Bangalore and any model of integration of public transport should begin with the footpaths,” said N Sivasailam.

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw remarked that it was unfortunate that despite Bangalore contribution to the state’s GDP and despite the fact that it aspires to be a city state, only 15 per cent of the state’s GDP was for Bangalore.