Spreading its tentacles far into the future, the Namma Metro knew exactly where its lines were headed. Yet, lakhs of Bengalureans were forcibly trapped in unending commute woes as the Metro’s painfully slow progress halved precious road space, triggering unprecedented congestion.
Could this have been avoided with better planning, better inter-agency coordination and yes, a quicker pace of construction? An explosion in vehicular numbers meant every inch of road space would come at a huge premium. The alternatives just did not match up.
In Kengeri, K R Puram, Whitefield and BTM Layout, commuters are still caught in extreme peak-hour congestion, as Metro stations and pillars have eaten into the already overstretched roads. Poorly laid roads, exasperated by the monsoon have made it all unimaginably chaotic.
