Naveen's blog

India - Dirtiest of All !

18 March 2010 - 10:53am — Naveen

54% of India or 638 million people do not have access to toilets & defecate in the open !

This is over 55% of the total for all such people in the world - we certainly hold the dubious distinction of outranking all others by a huge margin :) - In second place is Indonesia, with a paltry 58 million.

The report also states that 18% of urban India indulge in this practice (Mumbai, Kolkata & Chennai might account for a large part of this). The percentage for rural India is as high as 69%.

Figures for some 'top' countries are as follows:

Transport Hub at Mangalore

16 March 2010 - 11:54am — Naveen

The plan to build a large, formal bus stand for Mangalore had been conceived some years ago. Mangalore's original bus stand at Hampankatta had been too small with no scope for any expansion as it had been sandwiched right in the heart of town (CBD). Hence, KSRTC had shifted out to a newer facility of it's own long ago, however private buses continued to use the same bus-stand. With efflux of time, increased number of buses & severe congestion, the inter-city bus stand was moved to Statebank, close to the fishing harbour, which had long been the terminus for intra-city buses (The Hampankatta bus stand is now a convenient parking facility). Within a few years, due to increasing growth rate/s, much higher number of buses & space constraints, the need for a much larger facility was becoming more & more acute.

Parched summer this year

22 February 2010 - 10:25pm — Naveen

Summer is already here - & it seems like we are already in May, though we are still in mid-Feb.

With summer, the usual water & power shortage looms large - & the size of the shortage keeps increasing year after year.

Praja Meeting at Freedom Park

13 February 2010 - 4:34pm — Naveen

Silkboard (Pranav), Vinod, Sri, Mr Ananthram, Mr Pathy, Srivatsava, Raghunandana, myself & few others met at Freedom park earlier toady - wish many others could have made it too (apologies to those that did attend, but whose names I have missed out).

Amongst various discussions, it was emphasized that priority was needed for meetings with BMTC & BMRCL to discuss issues.

A peep into MRTS at Chennai

11 February 2010 - 5:42pm — Naveen

These are recent pictures of the MRTS (Commuter /Suburban Rail) at Chennai. New elevated tracks have been added, but these pictures are from an old line on the surface, between Beach & Tambaram.

Plans for BMTC's Rome need redrawing

6 February 2010 - 4:34pm — Naveen

BMTC has made a start on one front for building their Rome: by increasing bus inventories & increasing the number & types of services. Most other areas are still struggling to even get blueprints ready. Thus, we seem to have many attractive buildings put up haphazardly & with poor lighting in BMTC's Rome.

Is Monorail still on for Bangalore ?

25 January 2010 - 10:27pm — Naveen

This report in DH states that the Scomi Engineering /Geodesic Techiques tie up is pitching for Bangalore Monorail on BOT basis (build, own, transfer), whose first phase of execution will see $2.4 billion investment.

PT - Perceptions & Demands Vary

25 January 2010 - 9:23am — Naveen

As stated by ss87 on a previous thread, "Different people have different opinions", & only a large, all inclusive poll can reveal demands more accurately.

Metro Ph-2 being finalized ?

24 January 2010 - 8:39pm — Naveen

A DH article dated 19-Nov-2009 stated that Metro Phase-2 would have two routes: one from Kathriguppe to ITPL, & the other from IIM-B to Nagawara.

Roads over drains - The erstwhile "Club Pyramid" project

12 October 2009 - 6:07am — Naveen

According to this report in DH, two elevated roads are being planned over SWDs :

1) Seshadripuram to Double Road; &

2) Rajajinagar to Mysore Road.

Estimating travel demand - A different Approach

29 September 2009 - 7:08pm — Naveen

Further to ideas expressed for determining travel patterns in this thread :

Guangzhou – Many lessons for Bangalore

20 September 2009 - 7:54pm — Naveen

The third largest city in China, Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, is a city of about 8 million & is similar in population /size to Bangalore. It lies at a distance of a mere 2 hours (by road or rail) from Hong-Kong, in southern China.

Bicycle's Role in Last Mile Connectivity - The Chinese Example

4 September 2009 - 10:04am — Naveen

Which PT system in the world caters to last mile issues the way we demand motorized solutions ?

First TTMC Opened

2 September 2009 - 9:27am — Naveen

The first TTMC has been opened. This is a report from DH.

DULT /BMLTA - Policies In Isolation Will Not Work

29 August 2009 - 9:25pm — Naveen

Whilst the pedestrian & parking policies are welcome, it is hoped that these do not end up being implemented in isolation & removed from one another.

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