Silk Board Junction, with its own Twitter handle, has gained notoriety across the country for its terrible traffic jams.
Immediate relief for motorists remains a dream with the ongoing work on the elevated metro line. However better coordination between agencies will go a long way in improving the situation. With this in mind, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), along with other civic agencies, is drawing up a plan to ease traffic congestion between Silk Board junction and Jayadeva Hospital — one of the worst stretches in the city.
Civic Commissioner B.H. Anil Kumar and BMRCL Managing Director Ajay Seth, recently accompanied by senior BBMP and metro officials, recently inspected the area.
“The BMRCL is constructing a road-cum-metro from Ragigudda to Silk Board via Jayadeva. To facilitate, Jayadeva flyover is being demolished in phased manner adding to traffic woes,” said civic officials.
They admitted that there is an urgent need to coordinate with the traffic police and BMRCL to draw up alternate routes to ensure motorists are not inconvenienced further.
Mobility and traffic experts said the lack of coordination between agencies was the root cause of the problems faced by motorists.
Sanjeev V. Dyamannavar, urban commute expert, said the lack of proper service roads on the Outer Ring Road – between Silk Board and Banashankari, lack of pedestrian facilities, haphazard parking on the main road and construction debris being dumped on the road contributed to slowing down vehicular movement at this congested junction. “The traffic police and other civic agencies should urge the many IT companies on Bannerghatta Road to provide transport facilities to their employees, at least until the Metro construction is completed,” he said.
