BENGALURU: Three days of continuous rainfall severely disrupted pedestrian movement across the city. Waterlogged footpaths, ongoing construction, debris and illegal parking have made walking a daily struggle for residents.
Pedestrians in key areas like 80 Feet Road in Koramangala, JC Road, Banashankari and Post Office Road near Bangalore Central University are facing major difficulties due to obstructed and damaged footpaths.
A visit by TNIE to some of the locations revealed the extent of the challenges. On 80 Feet Road in Koramangala, massive cement pipes have been lying on the pavements as part of ongoing underground cable-laying work. While work on one side of the pavement is complete, the remaining pavement remains muddy and slippery as they are broken for work, making it nearly impossible to walk. The opposite side is blocked by large pipes, leaving pedestrians with no option but to walk on the road, which itself is waterlogged on many stretches.
On JC Road — one of the city’s busiest routes — developmental work by BWSSB and white-topping work by BBMP have worsened the condition of footpaths. Construction debris is scattered on the foothpaths, which are blocked by illegally parked vehicles. While footpaths on post office road are completely dug up for construction work, on the service road of 100 Feet Road in Devarabeesanahalli in Bellandur, footpaths are waterlogged due to the heavy rain.
Chandana N, a private firm employee in nearby Bellandur, said, “For the past three days, the footpaths have been waterlogged. The situation worsens with parked vehicles, uneven surfaces and slippery mud.”
Ramesh, a hotel owner on Koramangala’s 80 Feet Road, shared similar concerns. “Due to underground pipeline work, pedestrians are facing severe difficulties. One side has huge pipes, while the other is too slippery to walk on due to wet mud. There’s no safe option left,” he said.
Akhilesh, a student from Banashankari, rued, “The footpath near Banashankari bus stand is either used for garbage dumping, auto-rickshaw parking, or occupied by street vendors. The rain has worsened things. The unattended waste smells terrible, and the footpaths are completely unusable.”