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Bengaluru founder blames pedestrians for daily traffic chaos, internet divided: 'People aren’t the problem, system is'
Aaditya Aanand said that the congestion builds up around 6:50 am when hundreds of employees heading to the HAL office cross the road.
A Bengaluru-based founder has divided the internet after highlighting how pedestrians crossing a busy road instead of using a foot overbridge are causing daily traffic congestion during peak morning hours.
In a post shared on LinkedIn, Aaditya Aanand, founder and CEO of Multibagg AI, described his everyday commute to a badminton court located about 5 km from his home. “I live in Bengaluru. I leave for Badminton every day at 6:40 am. Court is 5 km away from my place. Ideally, in the morning, it should not take more than 10 minutes. However, I always get late,” he wrote, referring to the stretch along HAL Old Airport Road.
Aanand said that the congestion builds up around 6:50 am when hundreds of employees heading to the HAL office cross the road. “HAL office is on the right side and employees live on the left side (it’s my assumption) while going from Indiranagar. Irony is that hundreds of HAL employees cross the road around 6:50 am daily, causing a traffic jam and chaos,” he wrote.
“Irony is the fact that there is a foot over-bridge right there but these educated folks prefer to ignore it,” he added.
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How did social media react?
The post quickly caught the attention of social media users, drawing mixed reactions. While some questioned the practicality of foot overbridges, others said such situations are common in Indian cities.
“Footover bridge is one of dumbest idea.. why it is expected that people will climb stairs and walk 60%more for motorist convenience….. its should be bridge for vehicle and people should walk on plain underneath,” one user wrote.
“U can live anywhere in India , story is the same and leave 10 mins earlier dude , your living in a metro not in a village. Some things you have to ignore and somethings you have to amend and move on,” commented another.
A few users, however, defended the pedestrians, pointing to accessibility concerns. “Unless there are lifts or escalators, it’s unfair to expect people to use a foot overbridge every day. If the infrastructure isn’t designed for ease and accessibility, people aren’t the problem — the system is,” one user said.
“While this appears funny, it reflects the sad reality that our cities are built for cars, not people. Pedestrian bridges are car infrastructure, not pedestrian infrastructure. They impede pedestrians while facilitating car movement. Nobody wants to climb, then descend, 2 flights of stairs to cross a 2 lane road. Let alone the accessibility nightmare to disabled people,” commented another.
“Well my son trains in HAL ground I know exactly what he means...yes at that time the traffic is slow but manageable,they even have hal police who controls this and it is matter of some time.Frankly I won't name it chaos ,slow yes but that is expected,” wrote one user.
