Deadly Roads of Bangalore
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Written By tsubba - 7 December, 2007
Traffic
Bangalore
Road Safety
BMTC
environment
Bangalore Accident Numbers
Bangalore is the third-most dangerous city in the country when it comes to traffic.
Total killed since 2001: 5631
Total injured since 2001: 46,926
Killed by BMTC buses since 2004: 366
Injured by BMTC buses since 2004: 1478
Killed by BMTC buses in the last 10 months: 97
Injured by BMTC buses in the last 10 months: 288
Some Factors:
Lack of space is an important reason. The city roads can hold only around 8 lakh vehicles, but there are more than 30 lakh vehicles now. Poor quality roads, bad lighting, unmanned junctions, lack of signals, shortage of traffic policemen, motorists’ impatience and utter disregard for traffic rules and inadequate rescue mechanisms only make matters worse.
Another contributing factor to motorists’ indiscipline is lack of fear. Under the Motor Vehicles Act, the transport department can cancel the licence of a motorist if an offence is repeated. But, the rule has remained only on paper. The city traffic police introduced BlackBerrys to identify and come down heavily on repeat offenders. But these have remained ineffective as the traffic police don’t have the database of offending motorists. “Of the 10 Regional Transport Offices in the city, only five are computerised. So, we do not have data of all vehicles registered in the city. Till all the RTOs are computerised, it is difficult for us to identify repeat offenders and take further action,” said a police officer.
The traffic police register around 15 lakh cases of traffic offences every year. This year, till October 31, they have registered 10.78 lakh cases.
Initiatives like one-ways and traffic wardens have been of little help in reducing fatalities.
WHAT IS THE SOLUTION?
Experts feel that all stakeholders — BBMP, transport department and traffic police — should work together; the growth of vehicular population should be halted, mass transport system like the Metro rail and better road transport system should be in place; police should implement traffic laws strictly and the citizens should be more disciplined. “It takes a lot of time for all this to happen. For the time being, motorists have to be more cautious while driving. After all, it’s their life,” said an officer.
What do you guys think?
Sri has been pointing out to the plight of pedestrians time and again. I was thinking, instead of walk bridges which require people to climb initially, how about these pre-fab underpasses for pedestrian crossing?
Source: N D Shiva Kumar, TNN December 6, 2007
Motorists have to be more careful while driving!!! And how many years will we have to wait? Till half of Bangalore is wiped out? I saw this in the Times and it got my goat. We really don't need these sort of suggestions from them. I could go to the various blogsites for them. If the police plead helplessness it is not a pretty state of things.
Here is my letter to the TOI on "Big Ideas for Bangalore"
"Dear Sir,
It was very disappointing to read DCP Ramamurthy's ideas for Bangalore which essentially put all the problems in someone elses court. The police leadership has failed miserably in doing it's job. It has failed every law abiding person (now part of a rapidly dwinding tribe) of Bangalore and the rank and file policemen, who risk their lives and health trying to control the madness.
There is not one, I repeat not one, stretch in Bangalore where there is any sort of discipline. The one-ways have made life miserable for the bus commuters and the pedestrians. Take the case of Richmond Road. There is not one stretch from Shoolay Circle till Richmond Circle where a pedestrian can cross safely. Pedestrians also included the senior citizens and children. One should not have to risk life and limb to cross a road.
After 10 p.m. people jump lights as if the lights don't even exist. If the police cannot enforce lights, what are they capable of? Switch off the lights then. At least people won't have any illusions about things and will take care. How many people need to die on our roads daily for them to act?
The centre of the city is one big free for all. If the police is short staffed, they can at least pick one area of Bangalore and enforce disciple there - lane discipline, traffic lights, etc. ruthlessly for the next 3 months. We have heard enough excuses from them. Let them show they mean business in that one area and then cover more areas.
Srivathsa"
Tarle - the same thought crossed my mind. Let the traffic go up and down andpedestrians stay at the same level. Many solutions exist. The BBMP is obsessed with expressways and ring roads. They are willing to spend hundreds of crores on elevated roads but claim to have no money to surface roads or maintain pedestrian facilities. The country is slowly but surely becoming "of the elite, by the elite and for the elite".
Srivathsa
Time has come for each bangalorean to change himself, and follow some sort of discipline. Untill unless the people donot change, then i donot see an bunch of ******** to change it for u in bangalore, given the mentality of the people who are in power (They are least bothered).
But some essentials for these have to be done for eg:
1. Laning of the Road (Marking the lanes on the ROAD so that people have some sort of feeling that there are lanes)
2. Road Dividers which is most important. Remember Motorists and autorishaws and dracula CABS are resposnsible for crossing of lanes overtaking in signals, blocking and choking other side of traffic.
3. Good ROADS, it is a must for smooth traffic.
These basic ammenities are very much needed in the long run as pointed out by some very people before. But i see people have to change.
May be famous television channles can broadcast programs related to current traffic situation, showing how people are violating traffic laws and how to rectify the same like the famous CRIME DIARY you see.
Awareness is a must in bangalore. Many people who are flocking in the city are out of the state who (many a times) donot respect the city and its traffic so education is a must.
So i feel it is high time people should change for the good, have more patience and think that 5 min of delay would not cause a huge delay in their daily routine and stop racing on the roads.
Bangalorean,
I will stay away from the comment about "out of the state". I don't see our own people behave any better. The cab, auto and BMTC drivers are all people from here.
I remember reading Mohandas Pai's column on what is needed for Bangalore. It set me thinking on the following lines
There are about 100-150 fairly influential people (each having a certain circle of control and influence). The heads of Infosys, Wipro, TCS, Dell, SAP,Intel, TI, Motorola, The Art of Living, principals of the top schools, cricketers, film actors. If each of them told their influencees (for want of a better word) on how each of us can make the traffic better by behaving a bit better would it help? After all each of us makes up the traffic that we curse. Can we at Praja initiate something?
Check this link out www.easydriveforum.com. I plan to comment here and leave our website link here.
Srivathsa
sri good response to ToI.
bangalorean agree both design and education are important.
i think it is important to understand why the drivers are so badly educated.
#1. i think traffic rules and road safety must be part of high school syllabus.
#2. to renew licences they must retake tests.
but the basic question is why does the existing testing system fail so badly?
take written, get ll, take driving test get dl fail? why is this process corrupted? when it is the same system that works all over the world? this can only be fixed by top police officials only. why should a police official conduct honest tests? that is his job is a poor answer. very few people work like that, even in private companies.
Ghana has the same problem..probably even worse..they are trying radio..
"..Think Straight Foundation, a non-governmental organization based in Accra, has embarked on a programme aimed at using music through the electronic media to communicate the disastrous effects of this social menace in the hope that it will engender the needed behavioral change among the entire Ghanaian populace.
Radio it is said is ubiquitous. The power of the "darling boy"-radio in transforming and changing society is so enormous."
http://allafrica.com/stories/200712030850.html
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