Death of cyclist in B’luru raises safety concerns

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: A speeding vehicle mowed down a 47-year-old cyclist, Nagaraj, a resident of Begur, on the Kempegowda International Road on Sunday.

According to fellow cyclists in the city, Nagaraj was out on the road for his routine cycling activity when he was killed. He was on his way back from his morning activities and was killed by the speeding SUV at 7 am. The incident happened on the Hebbal flyover, said Ravi, a cyclist.

“The deceased was not wearing any safety gear and was declared brought dead by the doctors as he suffered a severe head injury. A complaint has been registered against the SUV driver and investigation is on,” he said. Meanwhile, cyclists on social media have raised concern over their safety after the recent mishap.

With this, they say the number of deaths the cyclist has gone up to 28 in the last three years, which they allege is because of the lack of safety measures on city roads. Naveen, 39, a cyclist to whom News Trail spoke, said, “There are not enough specified cycle lanes for cyclists in the city, which is why most of us fall prey to the speeding vehicles”.

Asked whether cyclists are violating the rules and taking to the flyovers, Sathya Sankar, Bicycle Mayor in Bengaluru, told News Trail, “Whenever a cyclist dies on the road, the first thing everyone does is victim blaming. The safety gears may not be as strong as they could shield an individual from being hit by a speeding vehicle. Selfpreservation is not the solution. It is not a highway that he cycled in, rather it is just a flyover. He has taken the route as there are ten lanes under the bridge with lots of crowds and business establishments causing disturbances.

On the other hand, the vehicles can be seen coming in the opposite direction, which is more dangerous to the public. Even though the deceased was not wearing any safety gear, can the SUV mow him to death? The driver must have driven the SUV on the left side, trying to overtake on the wrong side, leading him to mow him down”, he said.

Sankar also said if the BBMP is not spending money to build an integrated 5m cycle lane then every death of cyclists is on them, adding all the money spent on various other developments is of no use if the public has to die on the road. As many as 110 cyclists were injured in the last three years.