Bengaluru Metro’s ‘Mathematical Failure’ Leaves 1.5 Million People Trapped? This Reddit Post Is Eye-Opener

Bengaluru has often made headlines for its traffic. The city, dubbed India’s Silicon Valley, boasts of many startup firms and global companies, but its congestion woes make life tough for residents. Now, a Reddit post has highlighted how the city’s public transport system, specifically its metro, has not been planned according to the benefit of residents. The post, titled “1.5 Million People Trapped: The Mathematical Failure of Bangalore’s Metro Planning is Actually Insane!” points out how residents living in the Outer Ring Road (ORR), one of the city’s major work hubs, suffer due to a lack of planning in public transport.

The post, shared in the r/Bangalore subreddit, pointed out that over 1.5 million people work in the Outer Ring Road area.

Yet, when work started on the Bengaluru metro, the authorities did not connect the area properly, it claimed. Instead, they built tracks through residential areas like Jayanagar and Kanakpura Road. “It’s great if you want to go get a dosa, but it does literally nothing for the people actually paying the taxes that fund the Metro,” the post pointed out.

Redditor Highlights Bengaluru Metro Chaos

The post read, “1.5 million people work on that 17km stretch. It’s the densest tech corridor in the world. And the “hopeful” date for the Metro is 2027? We all know that’s code for 2030.” It also highlighted how the work for Electronic City, another major hub, has been completed for over a year. While the stations are ready, commuters cannot use the system as the authorities “forgot to order the damn trains on time. How do you build a multi-billion rupee line and forget the actual “train” part of the train system?” the post questioned.

The Redditor mentioned that railway lines at Bellandur/Carmelaram were quadrupled, but suburban trains are still not available for people working in the Outer Ring Road.

”It’s not “incompetence” anymore. It’s straight up contempt for the taxpayer. They want us stuck in those ORR traffic jams because as long as we’re in cars, they don’t have to fix the planning. Is there any other city in the world that generates this much GDP while treated with this much contempt by its planners? At what point do we admit that the “Silicon Valley of India” is being run like a tier-3 town?,” the user complained.

1.5 Million People Trapped: The Mathematical Failure of Bangalore’s Metro Planning is Actually Insane!
byu/Weary_Jellyfish4315 inbangalore

Redditors React To Bengaluru Metro Post

The post garnered mixed reactions. One person responded that the people living in the residential areas highlighted by the user were where the actual voters in the city lived and those would get precedence from politicians. “Meanwhile, the ORR region is filled with residents who haven’t even bothered to change their voter ids from whatever place they’re from despite living here for years. Ultimately, you have to realise that in a democracy, politicians work for votes. If you want change, then vote,” the person said.

Another mentioned, “They didn’t “forget” to order the trains. Manufacturing was delayed.”

One person wrote, “That purple/green line connects the actual heart of the city.. sure the planning might suck. But your delusional mind thinking ORR and Whitefield is where the creme de la creme stays is like saying Indian Americans with H1b visas on an average are amongst the highest paid ethnicity, so they should get the right to vote and they should be given priority over the actual citizens. Because they contribute the most in taxes!!”

A comment read, “Where are you getting this 1.5 million number that are excluded by metro connectivity? You are forgetting one of the biggest employee locations, Peenya industrial area and surrounding. Metro also cuts through or is accessible at many points in ORR.”

The post started a debate about Bengaluru’s metro system and what needs to be done to make the city’s public transit more effective. While several people did not agree with the post’s emphasis on how ORR has been excluded from metro planning, the discussion did reveal that efficient metro systems are the need of the hour in the city.