Starting from November 7, Bengaluru’s Church Street will be free of motorised transport on weekends, until the end of February 2021. The 750-metre-long street connects Brigade Road and Museum Cross Road, which lie in the heart of the Central Business District in the city.
This move is part of the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT)’s ‘Clean Air Street’ initiative. As part of this programme, the road will be vehicle-free from 10 am on Saturdays till midnight on Sunday. City Police Commissioner Kamal Pant has passed an order to this effect. For residents, a single point of entry and exit has been fixed on the MG Road side, and Rest House Road. Restaurants and cafes have been encouraged to use a part of the pavement to lay out their tables, and use it as part of their outdoor seating space.
This ‘Clean Air Street’ initiative will reportedly soon be replicated in other parts of the city as well, after judging the success of this pilot programme.
In a statement, DULT said, “Our aim is to reprioritise clean mobility and demonstrate the positive impact of streets focused on people and sustainable behaviours. The initiative will also provide the opportunity to trial and refine street designs and create a blueprint for other streets across Bengaluru and India as a whole.”
It added, “Throughout the duration of the Clean Air Street, the organisers propose engaging with all street users (businesses, shoppers, travellers and residents) to understand the social, economic and environmental impact of pedestrianisation and to ensure future urban policies are implemented in a way that works for all parties.”
This decision comes after a similar exercise was introduced in June 2019 by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike. However, the earlier programme was withdrawn after a public consultation meeting involving businesses and residents in the area was held by BBMP Commissioner N Manjunath Prasad.