3 hours for 6 km: Bengaluru ORR gridlocked after bandh
Infamous for its traffic jams, Bengaluru saw free roads on Tuesday due to a bandh over the Cauvery water dispute. However, commuters faced unprecedented traffic woes on Wednesday as the city's Outer Ring Road (ORR), a 60-km stretch adjoining the thriving tech corridor, where around 10 lakh IT employees work, saw an unusual traffic jam lasting four hours. While it took some commuters three hours to cover 6km, the traffic police pinpointed five culprits for the congestion.
Heavy traffic and extended weekend
The traffic police observed that usually on Wednesdays, the ORR sees 1.5-2 lakh vehicles. However, the vehicle count reached nearly 3.6 lakh this Wednesday due to the bandh, since many people reported to work and clocked out around the same time. Meanwhile, many were heading out of the city, given the upcoming weekend. Thursday is a holiday for Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi, while another bandh has been called on Friday. The Monday following the weekend will also be a holiday, marking Gandhi Jayanti.
Waterlogging, potholes, and vehicle breakdowns
Furthermore, waterlogging as a result of persistent showers made the gridlock worse. The rains also exacerbated potholes on the roads, impeding the smooth flow of traffic. Some stretches on the ORR have been narrowed due to the construction of metro infrastructure. Amid this, six vehicle breakdowns occurred between 3:30pm and 5:00pm. Notably, the road design near the tech corridor is susceptible to congestion, and even a minor disturbance brings the entire stretch to a standstill, Moneycontrol reported.
Companies advised to ask employees to clock out late
The Outer Ring Road Companies Association (ORRCA), which represents companies between Central Silk Board Junction and KR Puram, also advised its member companies to notify their employees to delay their departure time to avoid the gridlock. The ORRCA's report to the traffic police showed that 6.4 lakh employees commute between Silk Board and KR Puram using 3.3 lakh vehicles, which include personal cars and cabs.
City police earlier suggested measures to combat jams
In August, the Bengaluru Police proposed various strategies to companies in the city's tech corridor to reduce traffic. These included staggered office hours, carpooling, and dedicated buses for employees. Notably, similar measures were implemented in Hyderabad to combat traffic jams. Meanwhile, the ORRCA has asked companies and tech parks to furnish their requirements for dedicated bus services or Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) feeders for their employees.
ORR's original plan devolved in haphazard manner
Usually, Wednesdays see 197 traffic congestion alerts between Silk Board and Tin Factory on the ORR. But this Wednesday saw a whopping 1,069 alerts. The ORR was constructed in phases from 1996 to 2002 to connect major highways while diverting heavy vehicles away from the city center. However, tech parks came up on both sides of the ORR, disrupting the original plan. Currently, the tech corridor faces a lack of parallel roads.
