The Deccan Chronicle 14.12.2010
City sidewalks go from bad to worseDec.13: Poor maintenance, encroachment and digging up of footpaths have made walking a nightmare for pedestrians across the city. Even after a number of reports and special allocations in the BBMP budget, things have not changed at all. The main problem with the footpaths in the commercial areas of the city is rampant encroachment, poor maintenance, parking in residential areas and using the footpaths for vehicle parking, creating constant nuisance to walkers.
Even in congested areas like Richmond Road, Residency Road, Shivajinagar, Majestic, etc pavements are either being encroached upon or destroyed. In many places, footpaths which have been dug open for road widening work and laying of cables, remain in a state of disrepair even after several months, even as law enforcing agencies behave like mute spectators. According to officials, the BBMP is doing everything possible to ensure better pedestrian facilities, following the increasing number of walkers across the city. But the general perception is that even though BBMP is allocating sufficient funds for the improvement of pavements, no visible progress has been made.
According to the Policy Paper for Pedestrian Movement in the Bangalore Metropolitan Region, prepared by the Directorate of Urban Land Transport, just 60 per cent has been kept for Pedestrian Facilities in Cost Estimates for the entire Traffic and Transportation plan of the city, which is one of the major reasons for the problem. According to the report, city sidewalks are extensively used for parking and this, along with encroachments, creates a huge nuisance to pedestrians. According to the report, building pedestrian zones is one of the solutions to sort out the problem.
A.Ravindra, advisor to Chief Minister on Urban Affairs, says it is the responsibility of the Urban Local Bodies to ensure better pedestrian facilities. “State government has a clear-cut policy in this regard and has required ULBs including BBMP to keep money separate for this purpose. If the representatives failed to ensure this, people must reach out to them and find a solution for this problem. BBMP is solely responsible for all the issues related to the footpath problem,” he said.
