BENGALURU: Bengaluru’s underpasses, meant to ease traffic, show neglect and poor maintenance. City Express visited several of them across the city, and found them leaking, poorly lit, and filthy.
Vijayanagar
The walls of the underpass have lovely murals, but the art is defaced by neta and movie posters. The road is dirty, with plastic covers, tins and a variety of litter. Only some lights work.
West of Cord Road and Malleswaram
Neither underpass has proper lighting. Pedestrians as well as two-wheeler riders are wary of using these stretches, and traffic jams are common at night.
Nayandahalli
This underpass looks haphazard, and drain water leaks into it all the time. N R Nayak ,Vice President (Engineering), BDA, said, “I have visited the spot and spoken to the officials. Everything will be fine in two days.”
JP Nagar
Water drips at the underpass on Outer Ring Road, but no one knows where it comes from. The problem has persisted for over a year.
Okalipuram
Most people going towards Okalipuram from Majestic have to pass through this railway underpass. Because it is maintained poorly, pedestrians and two-wheelers wait for trains to pass, and this causes traffic jams.
Cantonment
This railway underpass has no light. It is littered with plastic bottles and other kinds of garbage.
Seshadripuram
This is also a dark railway underpass. When it rains, water leaks from the top.
Mayor’s Promise
Mayor Manjunath Reddy said he had visited the City Market underpass. “I will get them to do it by Monday,” he told City Express. Railway underpasses do not come under the BBMP but Reddy said he would speak to the authorities.