[sustran] No feet for city pedestrians in Bengaluru

[Vinay Baindur]

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/bengaluru/no-feet-city-pedestrians-647
No feet for city pedestrians

Bengaluru, Sept. 18: The city’s footpaths have been usurped by construction
companies, religious shrines, small-time vendors, trees and even electric
posts. And some major roads never had a pavement to begin with!
The dire situation faced by pedestrians in the city was brought to light by
a report of the Centre for Infrastructure, Sustainable Transport and Urban
Planning (CiSTUP), which had been approached by the state government to
think of ideas to make city roads accessible to pedestrians.
A report on pedestrian policies has also been submitted to CiSTUP and the
organisation will revert back with their recommendations.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, a senior CiSTUP member said, “The policy has
been drafted after consulting several stakeholders. Once the CiSTUP submits
the revised report to the government, it will work on implementing the
same.”
“The traffic policies introduced during the last few years have been
motorist-centric. It did not account for the pedestrians, who constitute a
majority of road users. Our current emphasis is on pedestrian mobility and
accessibility. The new policy will be implemented as soon as possible,” the
member added.
Traffic experts point out that the encroachment of footpaths will make the
task more difficult.
“Clearing the encroachment on the footpaths is a pending issue and the
government has to think of rehabilitation ideas to solve the problem,” said
additional commissioner of police (traffic) Praveen Sood.
“We have said time and again that pedestrians must not be ignored in our
policy planning. Almost 60 per cent of those who die on the city roads are
on foot at the time. Riders of two-wheelers are also a high-risk fatality
group, accounting for 30 per cent of the deaths. Safe pedestrian crossings,
underpasses and skywalks are a must in some busy areas in Bengaluru. More
resources also have to be mobilised by the government to ensure that
pedestrians can walk safely on the roads in the city,” the additional
commissioner added.