Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who is also Bengaluru Development Minister, has kicked up a storm with his “Even Gods can’t save Bengaluru” statement on Thursday. He is right. For a city referred to as a “Paradise”, when it was much smaller in size, to evolve into such a mess — thanks to humans flocking to the city and expanding it haphazardly at a record-beating rate — must be a challenge now even for the Gods to come down to salvage it.
Predictably, there is already a degree of political excitement to read deep into Shivakumar’s statement, ironically made at an event in which he himself released a handbook called “Namma Raste Kaipidi: Towards Safe, Inclusive and Resilient Roads in Bengaluru”.
The handbook has been brought out by a 10-member expert committee headed by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Engineer-in-Chief. It deals with a scientific and systematic approach to project planning, design, engineering, and operation and maintenance with the objective of improving city roads, decongesting the city and improving Namma Bengaluru’s civic quality, while aiming at better quality of life for its citizens. Shivakumar called it the “Constitution for all the (BBMP) engineers to follow”.
There may be something to Shivakumar doubting the “ability of the Gods” to save Bengaluru just days after taking a holy dip at the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj. May be, he as Bengaluru Development Minister sees the humongous problem the city faces as an acute challenge — which yielded him the opportunity to re-illuminate his pet project of tunnel roads and double-decker roads as the much-wanted solutions to Bengaluru’s woes.
If that is true, and going by the scientific explanations of transport and urban mobility experts, if tunnel roads and double-deckers are attempted, “Only God can save Bengaluru now” could be the collective gasp of 1.40 crore Bengalureans.
A December 2024 research report from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), “Scenario Evaluation for the Proposed Sub-Urban Rail Network and Metro Rail Network for Bangalore Metropolitan Region”, prepared by Prof Ashish Verma, Professor (Transport Systems Engineering), and Convenor, IISc Sustainable Transportation (IST) Lab, and his three research scholars, reveals that “double-decker roads and tunnel corridors, despite offering localised travel time reductions, encourage private vehicle usage, reduce public transit ridership, and exacerbate environmental and social disparities.”
The report instead recommends increasing suburban rail capacity, comprehensive mass rapid transport system (MRTS) coverage, and seamless modal integration to foster an equitable, scalable, and resilient urban mobility framework. The study provides valuable insights for policymakers to align infrastructure investments with sustainable and inclusive mobility goals.
Experts have warned of possible humongous chaos heaped on Bengalureans during the laying of tunnel roads and building double-decker roads. That is besides the time taken to realise such projects. Strengthening the current infrastructure — by enhancing MRTS, improving the existing roads in a scientific manner, public transport, opening walking zones by laying quality footpaths, and opening cycling zones across the city — is the better bet.
This can be further boosted by developing the blue-green infrastructure, detailed in the “Namma Raste Kaipidi”. It lays special focus on developing natural infrastructure through increasing green spaces like gardens, urban forests, green roofs, urban farms etc, and blue infra like lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands, and other natural and constructed drainage channels.
It enhances urban ecological health by integrating natural elements into the built environment, counterbalancing the impacts of development; besides filtering pollutants, replenishing groundwater, mitigating urban heat island effect, and supporting local biodiversity. It improves walkability and recreational spaces, and can incorporate traffic calming, pedestrian infrastructure and placemaking initiatives.
Gods may not come down to save Namma Bengaluru — no doubt that they could, if they did. But, when our own deeds turn Namma Bengaluru into the mess that it is today, isn’t it our duty to correct things? Isn’t there a belief that “God helps those who help themselves”? The “Namma Raste Kaipidi” handbook lays down the science. What we need is the spirit as citizens and a strong political will with a single-minded goal to salvage Namma Bengaluru.
Kevin Lynch, American urban planner and author of The Image of the City, had said, “A well-maintained city is a reflection of its people’s pride, where every corner tells a story of care and community.” When we do successfully transform Namma Bengaluru into a city that reflects our pride with its every corner telling a story of care and community, the Gods would surely be with us to celebrate. Until then, it’s up to us.