Bengaluru: Bengalureans heading to their hometowns for Dasara festivities Friday night faced hours of frustration as traffic congestion left long-distance buses operated by KSRTC and private operators crawling through the city roads. Heavy rain in the evening further worsened traffic, with some passengers spending five to six hours on city roads before they could get out.Tumakuru Road was among the worst-affected stretches. Abhishek M, who boarded a KSRTC bus at Majestic, said reaching the bus stand itself was a struggle because of heavy congestion from Corporation Circle to Majestic. “I booked an auto from my workplace, but traffic was moving at a snail’s pace. Fearing I would miss my bus, I got off near BVK Iyengar Road and walked to Majestic. Somehow, I managed to catch the bus, which left around 10pm. We reached Orion Mall around 11pm, but from there, it took more than 2.5 hours to reach Govardhan theatre. It was frustrating. By the time our bus crossed Nagasandra, it was around 2am,” he said.A KSRTC conductor operating on the Bengaluru-Mangaluru route said, “Our bus left Majestic almost on schedule. However, it took us more than 3.5 hours to travel from Navarang theatre to Goraguntepalya as traffic came to a standstill. At Govardhan theatre, four of our passengers were waiting for hours for the pick-up. They were exhausted and kept calling repeatedly, worried they would miss the bus.”A traffic police officer said 800 to 900 buses typically pass through the Yeshwanthpur-Goraguntepalya stretch of Tumakuru Road on normal weekends. During festive seasons and long weekends, the number surges to more than 2,500.The officer said, “On Friday, rain and heavy traffic caused congestion near Govardhan theatre and beyond for hours. Traffic eased only around 2.30am. All approach roads, including Navarang theatre, Chord Road, Sankey Tank Road, CV Raman Road and the ORR stretch, were choked. During festive seasons, thousands of passengers gather at the Govardhan theatre stop, where KSRTC and private operators pick them up. With no proper bus shelters, thousands of people stand along the busy road to board buses. Even if a bus stops for a couple of minutes to pick up passengers, it has a ripple effect on traffic. Due to space constraints and lack of bus bays and shelters, drivers often park haphazardly to pick up passengers, blocking traffic movement,” the officer said, adding more than 12 police personnel were deployed at the spot to regulate traffic.Authorities have proposed several measures to ease congestion on Tumakuru Road, including widening the stretch near Govardhan theatre and building bus shelters and bays. Traffic police had also suggested that KSRTC shift its operations to Basaveshwara Bus Terminal in Peenya, which has remained unused for years.Years ago, authorities proposed developing a transport hub at Madavara near BIEC to handle long-distance buses and prevent them from entering the city and choking roads. The plan was to encourage passengers to use Metro or buses to reach BIEC and board long-distance buses there.Similar proposals were mooted for Mysuru Road near Challaghatta, KR Pura, Baiyappanahalli, Hebbal and other locations. However, the proposals have made little progress.Commuters also took to social media to flag worsening congestion on Hosur Road and connecting highways. Traffic piled up near Chandapura, leaving motorists stuck in gridlock. Commuters reported frequent traffic snarls between Attibele and Bommasandra. Incessant rain, pending works by NHAI and K-Ride, and waterlogging near Chandapura further slowed traffic.
