Originally tweeted by Rahul Kumar (@rahulcomp24) on November 10, 2020
By Aratrika Dey
The city’s cyclists breathed a sigh of relief as a dedicated pop-up lane on Outer Ring Road was designed for them, without the fear of being hit by passing vehicles. But their happiness is shortlived as motorcyclists are invading their safe spaces. The efforts of the government and the organizations that made the cycle lane possible are being nullified by motorcyclists in the city. Netizens have taken to social media to talk about their personal experiences, and share their grievances. Cyclist Murugan Brompton, shared a video where the motorcyclists can be seen using the cycling lane, in the opposite direction of the traffic.
Cyclist harassed by motorcyclists
Last evening, cyclist Rahul Kumar came across bikers using the cycling lanes on Outer Ring Road. “Bikers are refusing to leave the cycling lane even when we are educating them about it, says Kumar. In the 19-second video, it can be seen that the bikers come off as hostile, threatening to break the cyclist’s mobile phone when he begins to record the incident. It can also be seen that the service lane adjacent to the cycling lane is completely empty.
On requesting that the authorities take strict action against these rulebreakers, Bengaluru Traffic Police has asked the K R Puram Police to take the necessary steps in bringing the offenders to book. This incident has also been flagged by the Bicycle Mayor who has requested the city police commissioner to act before it’s too late.
The need for cycling lanes in the city
Found on either side of the 34-km stretch between Silk Board junction and KR Puram, the pop-up cycle lane spreads across 25 yards and falls under Cycling District 1.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for precaution and social-distance pushed a lot of citizens to take up cycling as a means to commute. The city has an established cycling community and this initiative was to recognize them. These lanes not only eliminate the chances of accidents from occurring but also reduces traffic congestion.
History repeats itself
In 2019, the BMTC, BBMP, and the traffic police joined hands to install bus priority lanes which ran for 22 kilometres. It was meant to increase efficiency and speed up the daily commute of several Bengalureans. However, when there were no bollards separating the bus priority lanes from the rest of the road, other vehicles felt free to use the priority lanes.
In this case, motorcyclists are using the cycling lanes unabashedly. This is a law and order issue that threatens the safety of the cyclists. Bicycle Mayor Sathya Sankaran has urged people to immediately notify the authorities about such acts that break the rules.
