Where would underpasses, flyovers and then elevated flyovers leave us? 880 crores for 9.5 kms, almost a similar amount for Jalahalli elevated flyover, a third one for the BIAL to cost 680 crores as on date apart from several hundred crores spent in satiating similar needs in various wards of the city. What is the kind of infrastructural mess that is being created and touted as great works of development? The fascination towards urban destruction by unrelentlessly pursuing these ‘concrete’ ideas should stop. Having said that, alternate solutions are available and not being pursued. To quote few examples –
1. Hosur Road elevated express –
· Previously this was a 6 laner with wide service roads, decently wide storm water drains on either side and a wide median. This was a very good NH design.
· Junction improvements at Bommanahalli, etc., would have definitely solved the problems instead of…
· Dedicated public transport (of any means) could have been planned on the median or alongside the storm water drains
2. Commuter Rail
3. Existing rail link to BIAL – after laying fresh tracks from Devanahalli town to BIAL. HSRL…is this really required?
These alternatives have been discussed threadbare earlier and the Government is surely aware of these. Even funds from NURM have been used for movement of private vehicles which is against the spirit of the mission. Not even a single project has been implemented that encourages pedestrian or cycling activity; of course some new buses have hit the roads.
The slew of these mega projects, some relevant and many irrelevant, just shows some lobbies holding sway over the Government. It is a different issue that both the Central and State Governments are not having funds and time to provide any relief to the soaring prices even as foodstocks keep rotting at their godowns. Or is it that the Governments are trying hard to keep the date with 9% growth by way of Government spending by creating or duplicating infrastructure?
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Lobbies? Join'em
Not even a single project has been implemented that encourages pedestrian or cycling activity;
I think this is the key. We should lobby to get the pedestrian and cycling things going. When is the E City cycling scheme going to take off?
I am not too worried about the elevated highway. Somewhere down the road when PT becomes all pervasive and convenient, we can convert it into dedicated busway/tramway on the lines of BRTS. Its not a waste. In fact if BRTS is laid between Hebbal and Silkboard it can be extended at a future date to E city.
Regarding food prices it has nothing to do with road infrastructure or even surprisingly money supply. It is all to do with our protectionism, the middle men who have been papmered by APMC lobbying. When people like Metro wanted to break this middleman shackle they were prevented from doing so. Now the very same middle man is sucking both the farmer and the consumer dry. Onions are being bought at 2 rupees from the farmer and sold to us for 30 rupees. Govt is protecting the vote bank of kirana retailers and the wholesalers. This is the very same shackle that we had even discussed on this platform a year or so ago. But hey we wanted protectionism. We were afraid of Walmarts and Metros eating up the stores because they bypassed the middlemen. So now eat this is what we are being told. Anyway this is an interesting discussion for another thread.
A TV show on Urban Transport Systems every week.
A new program in comparison of Urban Public Transport has been started on NDTV Profit on Saturdays at 8:30 PM.
Here is the recorded version on the web :
http://www.tubaah.com/det...
It is a good show by NDTV in comparison with so many auto shows that are aired and promote people to drive more cars.