This week started with the discomforting news of a woman being sexually assaulted while waiting for a cab at a bus stop in Jeevan Bima Nagar during the early hours of Sunday. But it is not necessarily at night that bus users feel unsafe.
Those who use public transport are subject to a range of problems ranging from the absence of bus stops to insufficient lighting at bus stops.
“At Basavanagudi, there is a bus stop and place to sit too, but the smell of urine is unbearable. People relieve themselves just behind the bus stop,” says Sharada.
Shamala R., a resident of Talaghattapura, complains of the lack of a designated bus stop. “The walk back home in the evening is also not very comfortable due to the lack of street lights. The only source of light is the headlights of vehicles,” she says.
Though services of Namma Metro have been extended up to 11 p.m., once out of the stations, commuters are on their own.
Pradeep Singh Kharola, Managing Director, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd., said, “As far as metro stations are concerned, they are completely safe for women.”
Vinay Sreenivasa from Bengaluru Bus Prayanikara Vedike said though commuters are encouraged to take public transport, little is being done to improve related infrastructure. “To begin with, the city has 8,000 bus stops but barely 2,000 have shelters. So one won’t know the location of a bus stop until they see people standing there. Secondly, sexual harassment at bus stops is not restricted to the night,” he said. He had proposed kiosks for street vendors at every bus stop to ensure the presence of people and in turn make passengers feel safe.
New design on the anvil
Bus stops come under the jurisdiction of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which announced an ambitious plan to introduce a new design on the lines of the ones on Nrupathunga Road.
“We have made four packages for tenders for the 2,200 bus stops recognised by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation to be remodelled on a PPP (public-private partnership) basis. All of them will be lit. We will offer advertisement rights in return for maintenance of bus stops, ground rent and advertisement tax,” says Nandish J.R., Executive Engineer, Traffic Engineering Cell, BBMP.
Those who use public transport are subject to a range of problems ranging from the absence of bus stops to insufficient lighting at bus stops.
“At Basavanagudi, there is a bus stop and place to sit too, but the smell of urine is unbearable. People relieve themselves just behind the bus stop,” says Sharada.
Shamala R., a resident of Talaghattapura, complains of the lack of a designated bus stop. “The walk back home in the evening is also not very comfortable due to the lack of street lights. The only source of light is the headlights of vehicles,” she says.
Though services of Namma Metro have been extended up to 11 p.m., once out of the stations, commuters are on their own.
Pradeep Singh Kharola, Managing Director, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd., said, “As far as metro stations are concerned, they are completely safe for women.”
Vinay Sreenivasa from Bengaluru Bus Prayanikara Vedike said though commuters are encouraged to take public transport, little is being done to improve related infrastructure. “To begin with, the city has 8,000 bus stops but barely 2,000 have shelters. So one won’t know the location of a bus stop until they see people standing there. Secondly, sexual harassment at bus stops is not restricted to the night,” he said. He had proposed kiosks for street vendors at every bus stop to ensure the presence of people and in turn make passengers feel safe.
New design on the anvil
Bus stops come under the jurisdiction of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which announced an ambitious plan to introduce a new design on the lines of the ones on Nrupathunga Road.
“We have made four packages for tenders for the 2,200 bus stops recognised by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation to be remodelled on a PPP (public-private partnership) basis. All of them will be lit. We will offer advertisement rights in return for maintenance of bus stops, ground rent and advertisement tax,” says Nandish J.R., Executive Engineer, Traffic Engineering Cell, BBMP.