THOUGHTS ON TRANSPORT
On the day before yesterday, I was caught in a traffic jam while returning from work. For Bangalore, this is a common event, of course. The reason this time was the Varamahalakshmi festival. Before any festival, it looks like that middle class Bangalore comes to shop in all its markets ! There were two hot spots in my route and it took me 15 minutes to cross a stretch that should have been done in 5 ! Since I was in a staff bus and the music on my portable music player was insipid, my thoughts turned to traffic and what could be done to improve it. I suppose I should have been frustrated and cursing the traffic, but for some reason my thoughts were more reflective than angry ! What could be done to resolve the chronic traffic issues in our city ?
The most commonly touted solutions passed through my head, of course ! The upcoming Bangalore Metro (http://www.bmrc.co.in/) may be a panacea to some extent. Then there are the initiatives taken by the government also : the website http://www.btrac.in/ contains a strategy that proposes to make traffic smoother by 2010.
My feeling is that the reasons behind the current high traffic need to be examined to find solutions, some of which are covered in the BTRAC website. So why do we have traffic jams in "namma Bengaluru" ?
Part of the reason is the culture of the drivers, of course. Here I would say all drivers including car owners, two wheelers, buses and auto drivers are all equally to blame. On my motor bike, it is rather easy to ignore lane discipline, but it also possible to do that even when I am in my car ! At any intersection, all drivers from all sides will advance first and might is clearly right in this scenario. In this scenario, my sympathies lie with the traffic policemen who have a thankless job to do. There is frustration among drivers, road rage is all too real and sometimes even the policemen are powerless and unable to control the situation.
The other major reason is the sheer affordability of cars now. With the booming economy in recent years, it is only natural that middle class people in urban cities are buying cars and preferring to use it rather than bikes, particularly in the monsoon reason. For the nuclear family in the monsoon, it is natural to prefer the comfort of the car to the risk of getting wet on the uncovered scooter or motor bike ! There are at least 1.95 million cars in Bangalore !
The number of cars has increased and unfortunately the number of parking spaces in Bangalore has not kept apace ! The growth of the city has meant that new malls and shops don't reserve space for parking. This means that cars and other vehicles are parked on the road. Most of the roads in the city can fit in two cars - if that ! The parked cars on one side further reduces space for moving cars !
Finally, the condition of some of the roads is so pathetic, there are bottlenecks which would slow down any driver, no matter how experienced he is in driving.
What solution (or solutions) would tackle all these issues ?! Here are my solutions !
Bangalore needs a dedicated traffic management corps ! I feel that software companies and other private organizations in conjunction with the government can set up an organization of traffic policemen who can report traffic law violators. I see these people take photographs of cars rushing through an orange signal before it turns red, of bikes taking a left turn when it is not yet time, etc. ! For the traffic offenders, rather than fines, the punishment would be to seize their vehicles and also their licenses for a brief period of time like a month, etc. ! This would act as a real deterrent, since it would immobilize the offender ! I wouldn't like the prospect of having to also "loan" my bike to a government agency !
As BTRAC indicates, most of the traffic is in the centre of the city. In my opinion, a "congestion tax" in such areas would be a nice way to act as another deterrent for vehicle owners. Unless I am willing to pay this extra tax, I would not want to go to "town". The moment traffic density exceeds a certain value, this tax should be levied for that particular area.
Similarly, "loading tax" is another idea in my head. A car is a wasteful vehicle if there is only a single occupant. If there are less than 3 people in the car (including children), the car owner would have to pay tax. I know this is a rather impractical idea, though :-( How can the average "loading" be measured ? Isn't the idea a an intrusion on individual rights ?! Yes, but the individual is also intruding on others' rights by taking a car that occupies a considerable and driving it in the high traffic zones of the city !
The loading tax may be relevant for staff buses. When we go to work in a staff bus, it is full. After we get off, the bus lies idle. Why can't this bus be used to transport people to the nearest metro stop when it comes ?! We need as many spokes in the hub and spoke transport arrangement as possible. The metro is the hub and its stops can act as mini hubs. To connect the mini hubs to the end user is again a problem that may lead to even the metro not being successful !
If the metro is more than 1 km away from my doorstep, I may be disinclined to use it. What I need is a bus that can take me to the nearest metro stop and also drop me home after I return, no matter what time it is. Staff buses, mini buses, etc. should be used for this purpose.
Another proposed solution is the idea of vertical skyscrapers which can be used only for parking. Such buildings need to be planned and set up in the city centre.
Interestingly, BMTC, the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation is also looking to solve the traffic problem by launching an IPO. http://www.thehindu.com/2007/08/20/stories/2007082053920100.htm has the details.
A solution for Bangalore's traffic woes may come, sooner rather than later ! I will end on that optimistic note !!
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NOTE:
I had originally written this blog in another site. Since that site is no longer accessible, I am uploading it in this blog at http://fewidlethoughts.blogspot.in/ using the same date as the original blog dates.
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===== COMMON TEXT FOR ALL BLOGS =====
++++++ BEGINS ++++++
When I created my first blog, I thought I was
being clever by being "anonymous" and let my
opinions speak for themselves (see the archive !)
Imagine my embarrassment when I saw my name
displayed ! So now, while I still retain the blog
name as "Anonymous Expressions", I will only
request you to ignore my name and concentrate on
my opinions instead !
ALL COPYRIGHTS AND TRADEMARKS ARE ACKNOWLEDGED
AS THE PROPERTIES OF THEIR OWNERS.
The opinions expressed in the Weblogs are my
personal opinions. Please tell me if you spot any
factual mistakes or don't like the way I have
expressed a view. If I can see your point, I will
correct the mistake. You can email me at
kiran.suma@gmail.com.
++++++ ENDS ++++++
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
On the day before yesterday, I was caught in a traffic jam while returning from work. For Bangalore, this is a common event, of course. The reason this time was the Varamahalakshmi festival. Before any festival, it looks like that middle class Bangalore comes to shop in all its markets ! There were two hot spots in my route and it took me 15 minutes to cross a stretch that should have been done in 5 ! Since I was in a staff bus and the music on my portable music player was insipid, my thoughts turned to traffic and what could be done to improve it. I suppose I should have been frustrated and cursing the traffic, but for some reason my thoughts were more reflective than angry ! What could be done to resolve the chronic traffic issues in our city ?
The most commonly touted solutions passed through my head, of course ! The upcoming Bangalore Metro (http://www.bmrc.co.in/) may be a panacea to some extent. Then there are the initiatives taken by the government also : the website http://www.btrac.in/ contains a strategy that proposes to make traffic smoother by 2010.
My feeling is that the reasons behind the current high traffic need to be examined to find solutions, some of which are covered in the BTRAC website. So why do we have traffic jams in "namma Bengaluru" ?
Part of the reason is the culture of the drivers, of course. Here I would say all drivers including car owners, two wheelers, buses and auto drivers are all equally to blame. On my motor bike, it is rather easy to ignore lane discipline, but it also possible to do that even when I am in my car ! At any intersection, all drivers from all sides will advance first and might is clearly right in this scenario. In this scenario, my sympathies lie with the traffic policemen who have a thankless job to do. There is frustration among drivers, road rage is all too real and sometimes even the policemen are powerless and unable to control the situation.
The other major reason is the sheer affordability of cars now. With the booming economy in recent years, it is only natural that middle class people in urban cities are buying cars and preferring to use it rather than bikes, particularly in the monsoon reason. For the nuclear family in the monsoon, it is natural to prefer the comfort of the car to the risk of getting wet on the uncovered scooter or motor bike ! There are at least 1.95 million cars in Bangalore !
The number of cars has increased and unfortunately the number of parking spaces in Bangalore has not kept apace ! The growth of the city has meant that new malls and shops don't reserve space for parking. This means that cars and other vehicles are parked on the road. Most of the roads in the city can fit in two cars - if that ! The parked cars on one side further reduces space for moving cars !
Finally, the condition of some of the roads is so pathetic, there are bottlenecks which would slow down any driver, no matter how experienced he is in driving.
What solution (or solutions) would tackle all these issues ?! Here are my solutions !
Bangalore needs a dedicated traffic management corps ! I feel that software companies and other private organizations in conjunction with the government can set up an organization of traffic policemen who can report traffic law violators. I see these people take photographs of cars rushing through an orange signal before it turns red, of bikes taking a left turn when it is not yet time, etc. ! For the traffic offenders, rather than fines, the punishment would be to seize their vehicles and also their licenses for a brief period of time like a month, etc. ! This would act as a real deterrent, since it would immobilize the offender ! I wouldn't like the prospect of having to also "loan" my bike to a government agency !
As BTRAC indicates, most of the traffic is in the centre of the city. In my opinion, a "congestion tax" in such areas would be a nice way to act as another deterrent for vehicle owners. Unless I am willing to pay this extra tax, I would not want to go to "town". The moment traffic density exceeds a certain value, this tax should be levied for that particular area.
Similarly, "loading tax" is another idea in my head. A car is a wasteful vehicle if there is only a single occupant. If there are less than 3 people in the car (including children), the car owner would have to pay tax. I know this is a rather impractical idea, though :-( How can the average "loading" be measured ? Isn't the idea a an intrusion on individual rights ?! Yes, but the individual is also intruding on others' rights by taking a car that occupies a considerable and driving it in the high traffic zones of the city !
The loading tax may be relevant for staff buses. When we go to work in a staff bus, it is full. After we get off, the bus lies idle. Why can't this bus be used to transport people to the nearest metro stop when it comes ?! We need as many spokes in the hub and spoke transport arrangement as possible. The metro is the hub and its stops can act as mini hubs. To connect the mini hubs to the end user is again a problem that may lead to even the metro not being successful !
If the metro is more than 1 km away from my doorstep, I may be disinclined to use it. What I need is a bus that can take me to the nearest metro stop and also drop me home after I return, no matter what time it is. Staff buses, mini buses, etc. should be used for this purpose.
Another proposed solution is the idea of vertical skyscrapers which can be used only for parking. Such buildings need to be planned and set up in the city centre.
Interestingly, BMTC, the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation is also looking to solve the traffic problem by launching an IPO. http://www.thehindu.com/2007/08/20/stories/2007082053920100.htm has the details.
A solution for Bangalore's traffic woes may come, sooner rather than later ! I will end on that optimistic note !!
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
NOTE:
I had originally written this blog in another site. Since that site is no longer accessible, I am uploading it in this blog at http://fewidlethoughts.blogspot.in/ using the same date as the original blog dates.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
===== COMMON TEXT FOR ALL BLOGS =====
++++++ BEGINS ++++++
When I created my first blog, I thought I was
being clever by being "anonymous" and let my
opinions speak for themselves (see the archive !)
Imagine my embarrassment when I saw my name
displayed ! So now, while I still retain the blog
name as "Anonymous Expressions", I will only
request you to ignore my name and concentrate on
my opinions instead !
ALL COPYRIGHTS AND TRADEMARKS ARE ACKNOWLEDGED
AS THE PROPERTIES OF THEIR OWNERS.
The opinions expressed in the Weblogs are my
personal opinions. Please tell me if you spot any
factual mistakes or don't like the way I have
expressed a view. If I can see your point, I will
correct the mistake. You can email me at
kiran.suma@gmail.com.
++++++ ENDS ++++++
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
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