In 2022, separate bus lanes were created near the Kengeri Satellite Bus Terminal to regulate traffic. The route faces traffic congestion again as the bus lanes have vanished.
Traffic congestion has returned to the Kengeri bus terminal area after cones placed to regulate traffic were removed. Plans to construct dividing walls to mark bus routes have also come to nought.
Buses pour in from the Kengeri Satellite Bus Terminal to the main road in a continual flow and other vehicles on the road have to stop for an average of 10 minutes to let them pass and for them to move ahead.
Yousuf Ali Baig, an auto driver, said that the Kengeri route is very busy and when buses stop on the main road, it leads to traffic congestion.
Some buses stop on the main road leading to inefficient traffic and pedestrian movement. Meenakshi, a pedestrian, said, “It normally takes seven to 10 minutes to cross the road from Kengeri Police Station as vehicles and buses keep coming in large numbers and the buses do not stop at their designated stops.
Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses use this route to travel to other states. Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) buses also use the route as many people travel from the Kengeri Satellite Bus Terminal to other locations like Majestic, Shivajinagar, Shantinagar, and Yeshwantpur.
In 2022, the Bengaluru Traffic Police put cones on the road to regulate the movement of buses in a single lane. But the cones have been removed and the congestion is high. Traffic officials say that the cones were taken away to make space for a more permanent solution.
Biresh, an Inspecting Officer at Kengeri Traffic Police Station said, “Cones were removed from the route because a concrete, wall-type structure was supposed to be made, but there has been no action taken as of now.” He added that they put cones only if the frequency of buses is high on the roads “They are very helpful in regulating the smooth flow of traffic,” he said. .
Another problem is that despite having designated stops, the buses stop on the main road for the passengers to board. Due to this traffic moves very slowly, especially during peak hours.
Nagaraj, a BMTC bus conductor said that people stand on the main road and not at the bus stand, that’s why they have to stop the bus on the road. He agreed that it was risky, there was no one to regulate movement.
The Kengeri Traffic Police Department, however, said that they will soon start regulating the passengers and make sure they stand only at the bus stop.
Vikram Bhat, Principal Architect and Urban designer at Urban Synthesis, said that the first thing required to ease the traffic at this junction is to have a traffic signal at least one to two kilometers away from the bus terminal so that the congestion doesn’t happen right outside the bus stand and there is enough space for movement of vehicles.
He said, “Designated bus lanes are needed to be maintained so that all other vehicles can move without having to stop behind the bus, as a bus needs to stop many times.” He added that ideally, there should be separate lanes for buses, cars, two-wheeler and cycles so that all vehicles can move in harmony.
