I finally caved in to a maniacal fit of aggressive driving last week, selfish motives being the catalyst. A slight misjudgment in estimating the travel time to my destination meant that I had to swerve left and right, perhaps getting on the nerves of other motorists as I flitted in and out of lanes (if there is such a thing on our roads). But seriously, traffic in Bangalore has gotten out of hand in recent years, making it quite difficult to reach anywhere without getting late. And if one is traveling by car, additional time needs to be factored in.
There are several reasons for the chaos on the roads. Sudden expansion of the city due to the burgeoning population, too many junctions, narrow roads, insufficient traffic policemen to name a few. Add to the mix poor driving and you have a perfect recipe for disaster. One thing that really hurts the city is the lack of an efficient transport system. Although it is much improved now, the damage has been done as many people took to using personal transport and are now unwilling to switch over. To add insult to injury, many cars have only a single occupant.
The government decided to project the metro as the messiah to all traffic woes. As with any large project, there are bound to be differences of opinion on its efficacy. I won’t delve into the debate on the necessity of the metro. But the pertinent question is: do we need development at the cost of the environment? Why do they have to be mutually exclusive? Numerous trees have been or are going to be cut, leading to a loss of vital lung space and natural beauty. Trees are an important cog in the ecological wheel. They help prevent soil erosion, provide shade and help regulate temperature. A major misconception many people seem to have is that planting saplings in place of mature trees can offset the damage done by cutting them. These trees would have taken several years to grow to their full size, and thus have a much greater capacity to act as heat sinks (i.e. to absorb carbon dioxide). Besides, given the dismal record of the municipality corporation in care and maintenance of saplings, there’s even more reason to be skeptical of the saplings-for-trees policy. We have to come out of the mindset that since we are a developing country, all key growth factors such as infrastructure need to be scaled rapidly to come on terms with the developed world. After years of rapid and rampant industrialization, the developed countries have finally realized the folly of their narrow-mindedness, and are implementing measures to counter the side-effects of decades of ill-planning. Many cities are introducing eco-friendly measures such as dedicated bicycle lanes, cycles for rent, vehicle-free zones, or areas with entry tax for vehicles. In Seoul, South Korea, a flyover had been built on an area where formerly a river used to flow. Recently, it was decided to restore the area to its past glory; the flyover was demolished, lots of trees planted and the entire stretch made a vehicle-free zone. Although such efforts must be lauded, all this can be completely avoided by adopting the right development strategy and learning from the mistakes already committed. There’s still some hope left provided we act now. We need to save what’s left of the environment instead of pursuing mindless destruction, and stop spending even more money trying to later restore it! This applies not only to cities, but also to our forests. Given the rate at which infrastructure projects are coming up, Bangalore will become just another city; the ‘garden city’ identity will be ground to the dust. Furthermore, the weather will become hotter, and another of the city’s charms will be lost. So let us not give in to the madness, but rather leave behind something for future generations to cherish.