By Reya Mehrotra
Obviously, since natural one doesn't seem to be working; Member of Parliament (MP) Tejasvi Surya meets Indian Institute of Science (IISc) prof. to brainstorm over possible solutions
A team of researchers from Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have sent a proposal to Bengaluru South Member of Parliament (MP) Tejasvi Surya to put an end to the traffic woes in the city, owing to his keen interest in understanding Bengaluru’s traffic situation & finding ways to end the chaos.
He recently held a meeting with Prof. Ashish Verma & Prof. Abdul Pinjari from the Civil Engineering Dept, Indian Institute of Science (IISc) about the same. Bengalureans too have been pitching in their suggestions to him.
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) team has suggested Traffic Flow Models, adaptive traffic signals based on Travel Demand Estimates (TDE) & use of Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning to predict congestion & possible mitigation of traffic. Ashish Verma says, “Based on our studies – ‘Simulation Study of the Elevated Corridor Project’ & the ‘Climatrans Report - Sustainable Transp. Measures for Liveable Bengaluru’, we have suggested several technical measures that can be adopted to transform the city’s traffic situation.”
Further, the team also discussed how road infrastructure based projects may not solve the city’s traffic problems but only degrade the situation by adding more vehicles.
The road infrastructure based projects will trap the city into a vicious circle of congestion
–Ashish Verma, Indian Institute of Science (IISc) prof.
Verma says, “We discussed what should be done in terms of transp. intervention & what should not be done. The road infrastructure based projects will trap the city into a vicious circle of congestion. The extra spaces that will be created with these will be occupied with the addition of personal vehicles. Vehicular emissions will also increase, adding to pollution & health problems. We need to have a combination of measures to push commuters towards public transit & pull them from personal vehicles through effective policies & planning, better & attractive public transit.”
The Member of Parliament (MP) acknowledged that modes of public transit must complement each other & that walking & cycling infrastructure in the city needs a push.
Verma adds, “Bus priority lanes must be prioritized. Bangalore Metropolitan Transp. Corporation (BMTC) is already planning to have a bus lane on pilot basis between Silk Board to Hebbal. We also have to ensure that the suburban rail & metro don't compete but complement each other.”
Bengalureans too have been sending in their suggestions to the MP. Deepika Karanth, resident of Vijaya Bank Layout who had to change her job to escape long travel hours, wrote to him, “The permissions for IT parks within the city should be stopped & they should be diverted to nearby areas like Devanahalli. Four days a week culture should also be introduced to reduce congestion on roads. & green days, where people only use public transit, should be encouraged. Carpooling should be widely promoted & footpaths must be made available for pedestrians.
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