BENGALURU: A day after traffic police issued a statement on restrictions and diversions at Hebbal flyover, regular commuters taking the flyover to Kempegowda International Airport demanded that traffic police stand on the stretch and manage traffic, instead of issuing directions on paper. Vehicles were banned from entering the flyover from the service road, however, commuters said only traffic cops can handle the changes made on Friday.
Amruthahalli resident Devaraj B, who takes the Hebbal flyover every day, said, “I took the service road to reach the city, as per the traffic police advisory, and saw few vehicles on the flyover. Since it is a bottleneck, similar traffic was seen ahead, near Mehkri Circle. I don’t think it’s a good idea and traffic police should ensure lane discipline on the flyover.
“On a social media group, resident welfare associations were discussing the flyover changes and raised a question: how come there is no traffic when VVIP/VIP convoys pass over the flyover, and policemen manage traffic. They should show the same interest for public movement,” Devaraj added.
MN Srihari, an expert from Transportation Infrastructure Planning Systems, said the changes will not help free up traffic snarls. “Traffic authorities have not taken the opinion of qualified experts before implementing the change. Police should stop heavy trucks on such flyovers, and I have observed that they are not serious about stopping goods and heavy vehicles during the day,” he said.
A senior officer from Hebbal Traffic Police Station said traffic was smooth after changes were implemented, and commuters had appreciated the system. “Since it was the first day, we had deployed 15 personnel to guide commuters,” he said.
However, there was traffic at the end of the flyover, as usual. Rajesh Kumar, a resident of Jakkur, said: “The authorities should consult residents and regular motorists before implementing any traffic diversion plans, or motorists will face severe hardship. They should come up with a permanent solution to decongest Hebbal, a major bottleneck as vehicles from all directions converge here.
MOBILITY WORKSHOP A LEARNING GROUND FOR BBMP OFFICIALS
Bengaluru: As teams from various cities made presentations of pedestrian and cycling-friendly measures being taken in their respective spaces, officials from Bengaluru, including those from Bengaluru Smart City and BBMP, were making notes on the best practices they could adopt to improve mobility. With the intention to bring cities together and learn from best practices for walking and cycling projects, the Smart Cities Mission, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and Institute for Transportation and Development Policy organised a two-day long Healthy Streets Capacity Development Workshop.