Flyover as a congestion-killer is not just a contemporary solution; it is more of a long-since disbanded solution to traffic bottlenecks everywhere. Nevertheless, there is an irresistible fascination with such even gully-free upper-level road systems. Although veteran transport evaluators shout that flyovers merely redistribute traffic without eliminating it, 17 such behemoths are on the agenda of our government for Namma Bengaluru planning.
BMTC buses, suburbs and metro rail, and a slum free Delhi process who calls themselves the Delhi Metropolitan Land Transport Authority too: these are the real congestion-busters – all are still in slow motion I am afraid. On the other hand, the government has declared a move to construct 17 elevated passageways on the main highways covering 100kms. The rough project cost estimation has been placed at: ₹12,000 crore.
Eight years back, plans to construct a steel flyover from Chalukya Circle to Mehkeri Circle was met with the most overly documented anti-flyover campaign within this country. There was such a violent opposition to the picture of the beast for was the monster which would swipe thousands of growing trees in the heart of the city that after a year, they were mentally awash with hive-mindedness and decided to scrap the proposal. However, the perception about these flyovers being suitably integrated into the transportation culture is strongly held by these decision makers.
Flawed development model
Bengaluru Bus Prayanikara Vedike’s Vinay K. Sreenivasa believes that this ‘stubbornness’ of such viewing is due to the economy built around it. “That seems to be the money-spinner for them. It is a nice way to house construction, first the corridors, and later the ideas of integration such as BRT, which will make more money, for some reason have just corridors for development,” he explores.
This clearly shows that since the official provisions of mobility policy have for so many years been against the motorists, the said motorists are easy to accept and even clamor for such projects. Clichés, “they ask for it. Car-goers ask for this. They don’t want bus lanes, they don’t want public transport. They just want the cars to go fast.”
Having once set their sights on building infrastructure to promote the movement of cars and SUVs rather than the people, developed cities have now begun dismantling flyovers to make way for bicycle mobility. The use of private cars has been discouraged and the use of owned vehicles within the city has become limited and too expensive. But here, says Vinay, even big industrialists are supporting and constructing elevated corridors such as this on Hosur Road. “They are the ones who have seen more than one country. They know the good and bad of the world, but they are the ones inciting these projects,” he cries.
18 million motorised trips
The population of Delhi is estimated at around 15 million (150 lakhs). “Let us say the per capita trip rate is nearly 1.2, of which everybody including children and old people goes for 1.2 non-walk and motorized trips – that you have 18 million trips every day. Now while bus accounts for around 4 to 4.5 million trips and the Metro for about 1 million trips, you are left with 12.5 million trips to address,” echoes Pawan Mulukutla, executive director. Transport at the World Resources Institute (WRI) India.
It is now up to private users of personal and shared semi-public transports including two-wheelers, cars, auto rickshaws, and others, to fill this 12.5 million gap. Is there a prospect of this, and are the elevated highway systems the answers we are looking for?
According to Pawan, a million rides ought to be serviced by public transportation. “What proposals should the government make in order to assist this on the policy level? In what other ways can they add to the fleet? For many years, I have been following BMTC, and their bus numbers has never risen above 7000 in my observation. We need to break this cycle. This understanding ought to infiltrate the political economy,” he said.
Long-commute needs
Another key area that could help alleviate congestion is reducing the need to travel long distances to reach their place of work. This means that residential developments must be made close to the places of work. However, the proliferation of work clusters in and around Hebbal, Outer Ring Countryside, HSR Layout, Koramangala in addition to Whitefield and Electronics City all contributed to the high costs of housing within these areas. The belief, Pawan, adds was that the land value and landscape will average out. “However I do not think it applies anymore. The housing market has now gone out of balance and created an over demand to satisfy the requirements of mobility.
The current tendency, that has been observed throughout the city, is this: There are signs of movement of the houses once located around the work areas towards the outskirts of the city.
As expected, this has provoked an enormous urge of the people for longer travel making it a case of making such trips upwards of 18 million and more.
Will flyovers solve this problem?” Flyovers only create bottlenecks”, he cites the words of Milton tomato opined Bob Marley stub . They do not solve the problem if you are not expanding the end to end capacities of the roadway / public transport from say south to follow the north or east to west by at least forty or fifty kilometers. All that you do is shift the problem to other parts of the city. There are countermeasures that have been articulated. Within months, one can observe a dispersal of the congestion only to find it deepening three kilometers upstream or downstream, explains him.
Prioritise alternative modes
The solution, as Zibi Jamal from Whitefield Rising reminds, is to instead finish construction of suburban rail, get 10.000 more BMTC buses, and connect Metro with more coaches. “The magnificent promise of vanishing the suburban train within 40 months is long over, no more dreams. The wisdom of the people puts the resolution to the problem in delivering the buses. Causing construction of flyovers promotes the use of private vehicles and from the globe we have witnessed the traffic will just not subside,” she says.
Certainly, the Metro project is progressing with new lines and reaches with Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) released for the same. However, as Zibi notes, the passengers need eight-car trains – such as those in level 4 – and not the existing six. This would help in reducing the frequency from eight minutes to five which is very helpful during peak hours to reduce the mad rush because of the limit in the capacity to people. As a result of capacity limits, looping services and leaving thousands of people stranded in stations as multiple services do exactly that several times, are frequent occurrences at the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited.
The government raises an argument of the congestion issue in the fact that in a short period about 1,500 new cars have to be added on the country’s roads. Zibi’s point is this: “If you persuade people that these flyovers and corridors are coming on their way, the tendency is bound to stay. People’s rush for the Metro is an indication that most of them are ready to use public transport if it is made easy and convenient for them. Put up more buses infill good bus shelters and they will come.”
There are ways of working in spite of this limitations. Pawan mentions the need for policy requirements that require land developments in excess of 500 homes to, as part of the land development, provide connecting bus service to the nearest Metro Station. “Why is the government acting as if nothing matters? These are the transport requirements that the developers should be pressured to meet in building the infrastructure. Many of these are within 2-3 km of a Metro Station,” he explains.
Minimizing the use of personal cars
Pawan argues that minimizing the use of private vehicles for work commutes, in this case, is the rule for managing congestion. “Herd movement on a work trip happens on peak days, the weekdays between Monday and Friday. Most of the complaints on congestion are about morning three hours and evening four-five hours. Why not allow the guiding principle of connecting Metro stations with the periphery where residents dwell by 7 metre buses that can also be operated by BMTC under its brand?”
Exploration and activation of types that fall outside the category of flyover and elevated corridor projects are plausible and practicable. Flyovers can only relieve congestion at a precise location – an intersection or a bridgehead. As he emphasizes, “Do they relieve congestion at a city level? The answer is very clearly negative. In Mumbai under PWD minister Nitin Gadkari 45 flyovers in total were constructed along Eastern and Western express highways. All is bottlenecks now. More than once Gadkari himself publicly acknowledged such development as incorrect.”
