BENGALURU: City police on Friday backed down on the decision to ban heavy trucks from entering the city during the day, and agreed to allow them to ply between 11 am and 4 pm. Subsequently, the truckers’ strike, which was scheduled to begin at midnight on Friday, was called off.
This comes as bad news for commuters who were slowly getting used to the idea of faster travel in the absence of heavy vehicles. Additional Commissioner (Traffic) B Dayananda said the new rules would be applicable to all heavy vehicles, including those carrying essential commodities and food items. The Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry had earlier suggested that vehicles carrying food items would be allowed to ply any time of the day.
Dayananda said several wholesale markets are located inside the city and efforts would be made to relocate them. Since the implementation of the ban from January 1 this year, several people had come out in its support. But it attracted the ire of industry and truck operators, who said they found it hard to ensure proper offloading of goods at night.
Earlier, the entry of heavy vehicles between 11 am and 4 pm was restricted on certain roads, but there are no such specifications in the new rules.