On the road, crossing the line could lead to danger for oncoming vehicles

Many roads don’t have medians and reckless motorists use the lane meant for oncoming vehicles for overtaking

Karnataka : Bengaluru : 16/08/2016 : Dattreya Temple main road near Malleshwarm at Palace Guttahalli (pic for Aditya's The Hindu Campaign story) Photo : V Sreenivasa Murthy

Medians are useful tools to control two-way traffic on busy roads. In their absence, lane discipline collapses during peak commuting hours as motorists — in an attempt to overtake others — occupy the opposite lane. This results in a classic logjam that can take up even up to an hour to clear.

This is a familiar story in Bengaluru, even on wide roads such as Gandhi Bazaar Main Road and Srinivas Nagar Main Road in Basavanagudi, which were once held up as model avenues. Both face the same problem: the lack of medians to discipline motorists.

B. Hemanth Kumar, a theatre person, who uses these roads daily, said that a median is the only solution. “Earlier, there wasn't much traffic on these roads and traffic jams were unheard of. But today, jams are the order of the day,” he said.

This problem is exacerbated on crucial sub-arterial roads. For instance, Rajajinagar in north Bengaluru needs a median on several roads. For instance, in the evenings, there is no semblance of lane discipline on 19th Main that houses Diacon Hospital, 12th Main that connects ESI Hospital to Bhashyam Circle, and Ramamandira Road.

The stretch of Hosur Road from Sarjapur Road junction to Madiwala underpass has now been thrown open to two-way traffic, but there is no median on this wide carriageway. Motorists say that heavy vehicles and buses are guilty of breaking lane discipline and making commuting a nightmare.

On Dattatreya Temple Street in Malleswaram, Begur Main Road, 27th Main Road in HSR Layout, that are relatively narrow, it is common for motorists to flout lane discipline while overtaking.

On such roads, traffic cops fear that medians may lead to more congestion.

The norms are that a median can be laid on a road that is wider than 14 metres or has four lanes.

Ideal height of a median

While absence of medians is a serious issue, there are instances of poorly planned medians failing to serve their purpose, which only adds to the chaos.

R. Hitendra, Additional Commissioner (Traffic), said that the ideal height of a median is one metre. It makes crossing over impossible for motorists and difficult for pedestrians.

Which brings us to the problem faced by people living on either side of a median. Forced to take a detour to the nearest pedestrian crossing, there have been instances of residents and local lobbies cutting medians to overcome the trouble.

Multiple right turns only render medians ineffective, say traffic cops.