A Bengaluru techie has sparked widespread outrage on social media with a viral video exposing the deplorable state of the city's footpaths. Yogeesh Prabhuswamy shared two videos on X, revealing broken pavements, rainwater-filled drains, and debris-lined roads that pose significant dangers to pedestrians. One clip showed commuters precariously standing on rainwater drains while waiting for buses, prompting Mr Prabhuswamy to abandon his plans to board the vehicle due to safety concerns.
''Walking in Bengaluru is an extreme sport. Need the skill to balance on tiny concrete strips and to jump from footpath to road! No, I didn't dare take this bus! Just one slip and a lifetime injury – that's how pedestrians are treated in the so-called "Infra Era,'' he wrote on X, while sharing the clips.
See the post here:
Walking in Bengaluru is an extreme sports. Need the skill to balance on tiny concrete strip and to jump from footpath to road!
No, I didn’t dare take this bus!
Just one slip and a lifetime injury – that’s how pedestrians are treated in the so-called “Infra Era”! #NadeyaluBidipic.twitter.com/BGUztE8Y8m— Yogeesh Prabhuswamy (@yogeeshgp) September 30, 2024
His video has garnered significant attention, sparking conversations about pedestrian safety and the city's neglect of its footpaths. Many residents echoed his concerns, sharing their experiences with Bengaluru's uneven and hazardous footpaths.
One user wrote, ''Even more shameful for BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) is that these have been built just now, not old crumbling infrastructure. Even new development is being done in such a shoddy way that there's no hope. And this is the case all over. Whitefield is covered with this wherever they've built these footpaths. And even this took several months to cover just 400 metres.''
Another commented, ''Pedestrians are lowest in the hierarchy on the roads. We do not have good roads, we have worse or non-existent footpaths, projects that are started (ejipura flyover, bellandur lake bridge) are left incomplete.''
A third said, ''Bengaluru's footpaths are the most irregular. They're often blocked by construction materials, forcing pedestrians onto the road, constantly looking out for speeding vehicles.''
A fourth added, ''True footpaths are dangerous to pedestrians and in some places I have noticed 2-foot wide footpaths how anyone can walk safely beside haphazard tiling, some places step footpaths, some places the stone slabs were broken. How can anyone walk safely? Funds allocated are going where to??''
