‘Save KBR’ campaign volunteers question relevance of flyovers

Questions covering a wide range of topics including erasure of green cover in the city, road transport policy of the government, and relevance of flyovers for urban commute were raised at the media conference addressed by the citizens and activists who are part of the ‘Save KBR’ campaign launched against the tree felling around the KBR National Park for construction of flyovers and underpasses.

The meet was organised following the Supreme Court’s stay against tree felling in the vicinity of the park. One of the petitioners, Kaajal Maheshwari, explained that the government failed to produce documents authenticating public hearing, which invalidates the eco sensitive zone fixed around the park. The earlier stay by the High Court was not vacated, yet the government is going ahead with the tree cutting.

Vijay Mallangi, against whom criminal cases were filed when he obstructed the felling of trees, pointed out that construction of flyovers would only worsen the situation, as the speeding vehicles would all be dumped at the first junction after the series of flyovers.

Flagging the cutback in the public transport and the average vehicle speed reduced over the decade despite abundance of flyovers, he urged the government to invest the ₹1,000 crore on public transport instead of the flyovers, and do away with the unlimited FSI to reduce congestion.

Prashanth Bachu, who studies Urban Transport, said flyovers make sense only at railway and river crossings, but not at traffic junctions. World over, flyovers are being removed, as they are ineffective in resolving congestion, he pointed out.

Environmental activist Lubna Sarwath raised a host of questions about the intentions of the government behind such projects. “Is it not the responsibility of the government to maintain healthy ratio of trees per person? Instead, it is cutting down trees. Is the intention bonafide or malafide? They changed the project from SRDP to H-CITI, but are presenting it as SRDP before the court. Is it bonafide?” she questioned.

Debunking the claims of de-congestion and emission reduction through flyovers, she questioned the rationale behind allowing rows of SUVs on the roads with a single traveller in each, while city buses are scarce to find.

“Is it bonafide to fell trees and build flyovers for vehicles which occupy more road space but carry fewer commuters?” she asked.

Public policy expert Donthi Narasimha Reddy, tracing through the history of the government’s attempts to compromise the integrity of the national park, said that the development model adopted for the city itself is problematic.

Flagging the groundwater depletion and rising temperatures in Jubilee Hills and Banjara Hills, he said KBR Park must be protected as a green haven, and any disturbance around it must be stopped.

Writer and Researcher Sagar Dhara described it as ‘Photosynthesis vs Fossil Fuel’ battle. He invoked Jevon’s Paradox to say that the increase in road space leads to more vehicles and more congestion. Out of the box solutions are needed, such as bicycle parking near metro rail stations and neighbourhood schools, he said.