A Bengaluru man, frustrated and stranded amidst a sea of vehicles, took matters into his own hands – or, in this case, legs. With no cabs, autos, or alternatives in sight, he walked an astonishing 12 km to reach his home. His ordeal, emblematic of a city in crisis, highlights the nightmarish traffic gridlock that paralysed Bengaluru on Wednesday.
One user on the microblogging platform X, named Tushar Luthra, shared, "My friend walked 12Kms back home in Bangalore today. He wasn't getting any cabs/autos/rapido or anything else. Quality of life even for the top 1%, after having all the means, is only hitting lows & lows in this city."
He added that his friend had gone for a health check up at Manipal hospital HAL to Sarjapur Main Road. “People in car took 3 hours to cover 6 kms. Meanwhile my friend covered 12kms in 3 hours by walking. So not sure if owning a car solves the problem,” he wrote in the comments and shared a photo of his steps, distance covered and time taken to back his claim.
Bengaluru's Outer Ring Road (ORR) bore the brunt of this congestion. Commuters found themselves trapped for over five hours. The traffic snarl on Bengaluru's ORR on September 27 was so severe that some schoolchildren found themselves returning home long after sunset, their afternoon journeys extended into the night.
Parents anxiously awaited their children's return from school, with some not reuniting until late into the night.
The traffic piled up due to a bandh called by farmer bodies in Karnataka against the release of Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu.
Frustrations spilled over on social media, with users expressing their dismay and disappointment in the city's transportation infrastructure. One user pointed out, "Cabs and autos have had their way for a long time. Laws barely keep them in order, and they're itching to break it."
Another user implored fellow residents to recognize the city's limitations and problems, emphasizing the need for change, stating, "Everyone should love their city/country but also should be aware of the limitations and problems. Because until then, it won't improve."
South African stand-up comedian Trevor Noah, scheduled to perform in Bengaluru, encountered his share of traffic woes. Despite managing to reach the venue 30 minutes late, a technical snag at the Manpho Convention Centre forced him to cancel his shows.
Biocon co-founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw expressed her disappointment over the incident, labeling it a "blot on Bangalore's tech image" and urging the convention centre to reflect on the situation.
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