It also evokes a deep sense of parochialism with people from each ward or zone proclaiming that traffic jams in their area measures highest in the misery index.
For those residing on Mysore Road nothing beats a traffic jam at Nayandahalli, those using Bannerghatta Road on a daily basis think it is the ultimate form of penance and forbearance. Those using the Whitefield Road think Kundanahalli junction is what the writers of Holy Bible had in mind when they talked about camel passing through the eye of a needle. Those residing near Hebbal think the same about Mekhri Circle.
But, however, among all these people there is a grudging consensus that Silk Board and K.R. Puram junctions are in different league and look at them with same amount of reverence as Rajinikant fans to their Thalaivar.
During my office commute I have to contend with Koramangala Sony Signal, a comparatively light weight one, but has now gathered some heft thanks to flyover work.
The ubiquitous earth movers, which seem to have already overrun half the city roads, have ensured that a major chunk in the middle of the road is not motorable and a tin sheet partition conveys they are here for a long haul.
For motorists on both sides the carriage space have come down to half of what it used to be and travel time doubled. The domino effect of this traffic bottleneck can be felt even four kilometres away at Embassy Golf Links technology park.
During peak hours the six-lane Inner Ring road has four rows of cars moving in each direction, with two-wheelers snaking through whatever little space is left. As one crosses Ejipura signal, the fight for restricted carriage space begins. Incessant honking, brinkmanship and big vehicle bullying smaller ones happen.
The passage through this stretch is also punctuated with long waits when signal turns red. This is the time to fret about getting late for office meeting, make frantic calls in this regard or more sedate pursuits such as listen to music, gaze at your phones or adjust the rear view mirror to check the make-up. Thankfully the last one is soon becoming passe, thanks to mirror app on phones.
It is also time to look at surroundings and feel rattled by the loud noise of heavy machinery, duck those seeking alms, especially the transgenders, and wait forlornly for the signal to turn green.
Tailpiece: During one such waits my attention was drawn towards a commotion in front of a shop front just after the Ejipura junction on way to Sony Signal.
A bike had rammed into another one from behind. The front wheel of that bike got stuck in the space between the rear wheel and exhaust pipe of the other one. Like two dogs trying to separate after a mating session,the two riders were frantically pulling their respective bikes in opposite directions. Both had to sweat a lot before they could accomplish it!
Also Read: Random Jottings
Good one #pyramidlearningplatforms
ReplyDelete