The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) has launched an intensive cleaning drive around the Majestic area after a latest viral video by a Canadian national exposed the sorry state of the city’s footpaths.
Photos of the operation, which focused on clearing and repairing pedestrian walkways, were shared on X, where the authority claimed it was working to ensure cleaner and safer walking spaces.
(Also Read: Canadian man’s latest footpath walk in Bengaluru reveals fresh horrors: 'People use footpaths as bathrooms’)
The move follows a now-viral video by Canadian resident Caleb Friesen, who documented his 2.4 km walk from Bengaluru’s Majestic bus stand to a Starbucks outlet entirely on footpaths.
{{/usCountry}}The move follows a now-viral video by Canadian resident Caleb Friesen, who documented his 2.4 km walk from Bengaluru’s Majestic bus stand to a Starbucks outlet entirely on footpaths.
{{/usCountry}}His video highlighted the everyday hazards faced by pedestrians, stretches blocked by barbed wire, garbage heaps, broken pavements, and even stairwells that descended directly into open drains. At one point, Caleb described the experience as “a nice little walk, if you can actually use the footpaths.”
After GBA posted pictures of the clean-up, Caleb himself responded with before-and-after images of the same stretch, thanking the civic body for its rapid action. “No more parkour over barbed wire required by pedestrians,” he quipped, in a light-hearted nod to the obstacles he had earlier encountered.
The swift response earned Caleb praise from Bengalureans online. One user wrote that they were “tempted to just nominate him as the mayor of Bengaluru,” while another thanked him for pushing the city to act, saying, “Bengaluru needs more residents like you.”
A third user, however, took the opportunity to point out that challenges remained elsewhere, suggesting Caleb should film his next video along the notorious Bellandur–Yemalur stretch, which has long been criticized for poor pedestrian infrastructure.
The episode has once again spotlighted Bengaluru’s fragile urban planning and the glaring gaps in basic infrastructure. While residents welcomed the clean-up near Majestic, many stressed that such action should not be restricted to one viral moment.
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