BBMP Bellandur Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike Wipro Sampath Raj Bengaluru Residents of Bellandur The underpass will be a terrible idea as it will worsen the condition and even flood during rains. There will be jams both in the underpass and on top of it. It is not a wisely engineered plan. Mukund Kumar, Bellandur Walks Project Bellandur Roads will be fixed Pavements will be bettered Look and feel will be improved Lakes will be revived, beautified It’s known the world over for its frothing lake. But a citizens’ group is working with theto convertinto a walkers’ paradiseBy this time next year, Bellandur could be a walker’s paradise. Citizens’ action group Bellandur Jothege has submitted a detailed proposal before the(BBMP) to transform 28 km of roads in Bellandur, which will not only decongest the routes but also make them pedestrian-friendly.The proposed project, called Bellandur Walks, will target the most congested points in the area and give them a complete makeover, starting from Bangalore Central to. In a meeting held on June 14, Bellandur Jothege members discussed the proposal with the BBMP engineers and officials.The proposed project found support from Mayor, BBMP Road and Traffic departments, and ward corporator Asha Suresh.As a pilot run, a 4-km stretch will be taken up first – from Bangalore Central to Wipro, covering also the Iblur junction. If all goes well, the remaining 24 km will also get similar walkways and parking facilities.On June 2, the model was presented to Mayor Sampath Raj who seemed to be fairly impressed with it and immediately lent his support by sending out a letter to the team. He also urged JC Mahadevpura zone Sunil Kumar and Parmeswaraiah, Chief Engineer, BBMP, to run the pilot 4 km model footpath project.Some of the proposals made by the group are: pre-fabricated compact shops, recycled material shelters, solar-powered streetlights, recycle waste bins, surveillance cameras, rubber pavers, pedestrian barriers, slim bus shelters. Apart from these, the group has also proposed for lakeside walking/ cycling trails, bollards at crossings, plazas under flyovers with food kiosks, junction roundabouts, and kerb ramps.The community-sourced programme will most importantly decongest traffic, so that residents opt for walking or public transport by June 2019.Naresh Sadasivan, one of the minds beside the Bellandur Walks model, said: “The project will be divided in two phases – the first phase is the 4-km walk which will solve most of the traffic and commuting problems in Bellandur. Then, in Phase 2, we will focus on the remaining 24 km. Before that we will have to deal with roadside shops that have encroached upon the entire sidewalk area, relocate mobile vendors to other places so that they don’t occupy the walking areas, and solve parking issues. The residents of Bellandur pay the highest amount of property taxes and what we get in return is not what we deserve. As Bellandur is already a developed area, we can’t implement 100 per cent change but adopt efficient designs that can improve the existing situation.”Also in the offing are road-widening and Metro for Sarjapura Road. “BBMP cannot disapprove our design because we have applied concept and logic. We are the ones who go through the pain of travelling on a jammed road every day, and have invested hundreds of hours in developing this model with the help of engineers, architects and inputs from residents.has well-qualified, educated people working in top companies; we will not come up with random ideas without thinking through. BBMP might have nice technical drawing for the projects, but we have common sense and that is what is needed to improve the situation,” said Sadasivan.According to BJ members, the proposed underpass at Harlur junction is a strict no-no as it will only worsen the situation.Mukund Kumar, also a member behind the Bellandur Walks project, said: “The underpass will be a terrible idea as it will worsen the condition and even flood during rains. There will be jams both in the underpass and on top of it. It is not a wisely engineered plan. BBMP has agreed to consider our model and we are hoping they give up the underpass project.”KP Singh, a Bellandur Jothege member who attended the meeting on Thursday, said: “The proposed underpass would only shift the traffic 500 metres ahead, from Harlur junction to Iblur junction. Instead of this one underpass, we have proposed a flyover and a small tunnel. The BBMP officials took our proposal very well and appreciated it in the meeting. They said they need some time to study the designs and will get back in a week to discuss its implementation. Since the widening of Sarjapura road is going on currently, it could take nearly six months for the work to start. We will meet BBMP engineers soon to discuss further.”Depending on the width of the road, sidewalks will be 6 feet, 9 feet, 10 feet and 12 feet in width, as per the plan for the 4-km stretch. The team has also developed a map for the project that identifies the blue lines for lake trails, green lines for the Bellandur Walks Footpath and purple lines for the arterial roads.The second phase will include beautification of roads while setting up pottery projects for children, and an opportunity for the showcase of native talents, under the flyover. The 4-km pilot project provides safety for people of all age groups with barricades securing the walking paths, bollards for motorcycles, clearly defined bus bays with well-designed bus stops, furniture zone with benches on the sidewalks for pedestrians to sit, and cycle paths for the entire 4-km stretch.“We want to make the walk on the 4-km stretch enjoyable so that people ditch vehicles for short-distance commutes and switch to walking, which will also reduce traffic density and provide health benefits,” said Naresh Sadasivan. A detailed report has been submitted to the BBMP.After Sanjay Giri’s death last year in December, and a number of accidents on the Outer Ring Road, a number of elderly citizens have stopped going out for fear of being hit by speeding vehicles. “Thousands of people living in and around Bellandur travel on these roads every day either for work or education. From Salarpuria Softzone to Prestige Techpark, around 5.75 lakh people work here, according to our survey. The working population either stays in Bellandur in PGs or apartments or takes some mode of transport to travel to their workplaces even if their offices are very close to their homes.It is because there are no safe pedestrian walkways. School kids who go for tuitions or to play are also at risk as they cannot cross the Outer Ring Road alone. People living near Outer Ring Road, who can’t travel alone, are literally under house arrest as they cannot move out without a vehicle,” says Naresh. Mukund adds: “The people living near the Central Prison say that we are constantly imprisoned by the traffic jams at the road and feel like prisoners of traffic.”Whenever a drain is clogged or requires cleaning, the BBMP digs up sidewalks, breaks open the pavement made with concrete slabs, and then mostly leaves it uncovered and without repair, disrupting the path. Drawing inspiration from the big cities of the world, the Jothege team proposes rubber tiles screwed on metal or concrete frames. Whenever an underground fixing is required, they can simply be unscrewed and then screwed back on after the job. Though it will cost more, BBMP’s job will become easier and pedestrians too won’t suffer during rains or repairs, said the group.Urban planning is completely absent on Sarjapura Road. The office complexes employ as much as 3,000-5,000 people but provide parking spaces only for 250 vehicles. Others use cabs that park on the roads and congest them.The Bellandur Walks project ensures better parking facilities in the second phase of the project.Talking to BM about the project, Chief Engineer Parmeswaraiah had earlier said: “The team met us and we discussed the project. Once the proposal is approved by the authorities concerned, we will be able to take further action. It is too early to talk about the funding.”Discretionary funds with the Mayor and the MP and special project funds will be used for the project. Apart from that, top companies like Mercedes Benz and Wells Fargo in Bellandur too have showed their support and promised funds for the walkway project.The team is currently also reviving Iblur Lake with the help of BBMP.After the group’s success with the request for Sanjay Giri Memorial Skywalk, opposite Akme Harmony apartments, this is another big initiative by the members.Roundabouts with pedestrian crossings at Kaikondrahalli, Iblur and Bellandur junctions; under-the-flyover community street at Iblur and Bellandur junctions; median refuge islands with pedestrian crossings at Carmelaram, Wipro and Kasavanahalli junctions; Carmelaram rail station will be revamped, will get good approach road and parking; grade separator traffic design opp Springfields Apartments. BMTC chakra routes will ply onarterial roadsModel footpath with pedestrian zone, road furniture zone and green zone up to 3-3.5 m; raised, canopied footpaths, sheltered from overhanging cables; all street vendors sans permit will be relocated in food street or food marketsRubber pavers, bus shelters made of recycled material, solar-powered streetlights, tipping mechanism recycle waste bins, surveillance cameras and pre-fabricated compact shops are some of the other planned featuresWater bodies will be revived; will have lakeside walking and cycling tracks. They will be fenced and a complete ban on plastic will be enforced. Besides, at least two public parks will be developed

Stay updated with all the Bangalore Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.