The civic body’s waste management mechanism has come under fire, but this time it’s not from residents. The traffic police say that unscientific garbage disposal is hampering the free flow of traffic. The Bengaluru Traffic Police (BTP) arrived at this conclusion after conducting a study, said officials.
“There are around 1,000 garbage trucks operating in and around the city, which pick up waste from dumping points. These trucks occupy a major portion of the road and disrupt traffic movement to a great extent during peak hours,” said P. Harishekaran, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic). The problem is compounded by the fact that drivers do not maintain lane disciple or follow road rules.
In an effort to address the issue, he convened a meeting with BBMP’s solid waste management officials on Tuesday, and asked them to stagger garbage disposal timings as well as instruct truck drivers to follow lane discipline.
“Peak hours for the city traffic in the morning is 8-11 a.m. During this period, around 80.76 lakh vehicles are on the roads every day with motorists trying to reach their work place on time. When slow moving vehicles, like garbage trucks, are on the road, it leads to chaos. It has a cascading effect on adjacent roads,” said Mr. Harishekharan quoting from the study.
He added that truck drivers “do not have traffic sense and park their vehicles in the middle of the road”.
According to traffic officials, in order to contain the problem, jurisdictional personnel have to be deputed at various spots to monitor the flow of traffic on a day-to-day basis.
“If the trucks move on the left side of the road, half of the problem would be solved,” a police officer said.
The traffic police hope that the meeting will have a positive impact.
“The solid waste management department responded positively to our proposal,” Mr. Harishekaran said.
