No gain from traffic in Cubbon Park 

Ashish Verma, Associate Professor, Transportation Systems Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, IISc. 
No gain from traffic in Cubbon Park 

BENGALURU: Even as public remains dismayed that traffic has been allowed inside Cubbon Park, a new study has found that contrary to public perception, passing through the city’s iconic lung space actually does not increase the commute time.

The Indian Institute of Science submitted the Traffic Impact Analysis of Closing Cubbon Park report to the State government on Tuesday, emphasising to authorities that this was the best time to promote public transport in the Central Business District. 

The study found that if one travels around Cubbon Park, the distance increases marginally by 333 metres and the commute time increases by a mere two minutes when passing through the park. 

People assume travelling through the park takes up less of their time, but it’s actually the opposite, says Prof. Ashish Verma, Associate Professor, Transportation Systems Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, IISc. 

“We found that travelling through the prime lung space in the city does not add to any vehicular traffic improvement. So why do it when there is no gain? It is thus advisable to ban traffic inside Cubbon Park in the long-run.

As for offices located inside the park, it would be better to improve public transport, last-mile connectivity and emphasise localised transport such as bicycle-sharing and battery-operated vehicles,” he said. Verma says they tried various models of vehicle movement – through and around the park – and the impact on commute times and business, but found no difference when people travelled through the park or around it. 

The study was done on the request of citizen groHeritage Beku, which has been working extensively to get the government to ban the movement of vehicles inside the city’s lung space. The researchers also suggested that a long term-plan be prepared to make Cubbon Park a more socially vibrant space, without impacting the environment and ecology.

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