Proposal to increase the existing fine from ₹500 to ₹5,000
Strict legal action if pedestrians are injured in accidents
Calls for enforcement of alternate parking regulations
No Bus Stops Near Traffic Signals
Bengaluru, July 22: Minister Krishna Byre Gowda has written to the Transport Minister urging that the penalty for riding motor vehicles on footpaths be increased to ₹5,000. Chairing a meeting with Bengaluru Traffic Police officials on Wednesday, the Minister said that the ongoing drive to remove encroachments from footpaths across the city has been undertaken in compliance with the Supreme Court’s directions to safeguard the public’s right to walk. The encroachment removal drive across the jurisdiction of all five city corporations has also received appreciation from the public. However, it is not appropriate for any type of motor vehicle to be driven on the space that has been cleared after the removal of street vendors. Such acts cannot be tolerated, he said.
The Minister noted that it has come to his attention that motorists are riding on the cleared footpaths without any fear of consequences, and that several people have already complained to him about the issue. “If accidents involving pedestrians occur because vehicles are being ridden on footpaths, who will be held responsible?” he asked. He directed the Traffic Police to initiate stringent legal action against those indulging in such violations. He further stated that only a higher penalty would effectively deter such offences. Accordingly, he informed the meeting that he would write to the Transport Department requesting that the existing fine of ₹500 for riding on footpaths be increased to ₹5,000.
Calls for Enforcement of Parking Rules on Major Roads
The Minister said that, in his opinion, parking should not be permitted on arterial and sub-arterial roads. While acknowledging that implementing such a rule may be difficult in practice, he urged officials to at least ensure enforcement of the regulations that are already in force.
To regulate traffic congestion on the city’s major roads, an Alternate Parking or One-Side Parking system is already in place. However, motorists are not following these rules. Vehicles continue to be parked on both sides of the road throughout the month, resulting in further traffic congestion. Expressing his dissatisfaction, the Minister asked officials what the difficulty was in enforcing the existing regulations.
He pointed out that no fresh notification is required to enforce the current rules and urged the police to pay greater attention to the issue. If the alternate parking system is implemented strictly, at least 7 to 8 feet of space would remain available on one side of the road every day. This would also benefit motorists and help reduce traffic congestion to a certain extent, he said.
The Minister observed that spending lakhs of crores of rupees to address Bengaluru’s traffic problems would achieve little unless people are made aware of traffic and parking regulations. He therefore instructed officials to first create public awareness about parking rules and to ensure strict implementation of the alternate parking system on the city’s major roads.
No Bus Stops Near Traffic Signals
The Minister also noted that vehicles stopping near traffic signals contribute to traffic congestion. He directed officials not to allow any vehicle, including BMTC buses, to stop unnecessarily near traffic signals.
He further instructed that no bus stops should be located within 75 metres of traffic signals or within 50 metres of junctions. Wherever such bus stops currently exist, officials were directed to relocate them.
The meeting was attended by Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Karthik Reddy; Additional Commissioners Latha R., Lokhande Snehal Sudhakar, Kavitha Rajaram, Venkata Chalapathi, Naveen Kumar Raju; Chief Engineers; Traffic Police officials; and other senior officers.
