The High Court of Karnataka, in a hearing on Tuesday, September 12, recommended that the state government consider adjusting school and factory timings to alleviate traffic congestion in Bengaluru during peak hours. The court also advised the government to engage in consultations with relevant stakeholders.
The hearing was related to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Samarpana Trust in 2020, which sought to implement a 2014 Supreme Court directive aimed at reducing traffic congestion in cities. Specifically, the PIL sought improved traffic management between Mekhri Circle and the BDA head office.
Regarding traffic congestion on Bellary Road up to the Hebbal flyover from the BDA junction, the Bench instructed the government to expedite the preparation of a project report for a 37-kilometre metro line between Sarjapur and Hebbal, passing through Koramangala, Dairy Circle, Shantinagar, Cauvery junction, and Mekhri junction.
The Karnataka government had recently proposed the construction of a new metro line between Sarjapur and Hebbal in July 2023 during the budget presentation. The project is still in its initial stages and a Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been submitted to the Union government for approval.
The bench also suggested that the Secretary of Industries and Labour arrange a meeting with representatives of various industries, factories, the Chamber of Commerce and others to gather inputs on potential timing adjustments in factories, commercial establishments, and workplaces. The stakeholders were encouraged to propose solutions such as flexible working hours to ease traffic and reduce the burden of vehicles on the roads during peak hours.
The Bench also noted that traffic congestion in the Central Business District could be mitigated to some extent if the police enforced a notification issued in 2014, restricting certain categories of heavy vehicles from entering the city during specific times of the day.
“We permit the state government to proceed further and to take appropriate steps already initiated by the state government for ease of traffic and by considering the direction/suggestion of petitioner and the court, submit a fresh status and action taken report to this court after six weeks," Live Law reported the bench saying.