Commuting to work is one of the most boring aspects of riding! Esp, to those of us who like to head out of town! Unfortunately it also makes up for more than 90% (atleast for me unfortunately) of riding time and distance on that odometer!
However on a day to day basis, I keep trying out a lot of stuff to make my 16 to 22 km (oneway, depending on the route I take) commute interesting and eventful. I normally try to look for alternative routes in order to save time or have a more enjoyable ride! Shortcuts can be fun and challenging as well (got stuck a couple of times before). Today was one of these days! Happened to start from home deciding to take the longish (20km) route (Netaji Road, Richard's Park, Davis Road, Banasawadi Road, Dodda Banaswadi, Outer Ring Road, Old Madras Road (OMR), KR Puram, Outer Ring Road (ORR), Marthahalli, Office). I kinda like this route coz it is very varied. From narrow roads around DaCosta Layout, to the (relatively) crowded Kamanahalli flyover to the nice curves in the Dodda Banaswadi village finally the straights of the ORR where you can have a short blast at cracking the ton and dry off some of the perspiration you have collected in your jacket earlier in the commute. The only pain point in this route is the jam I normally encounter under the KR Puram hanging bridge/flyover. Those of you who have ever tried to get on to the ORR (Towards Marthahalli/Whitefield) from Old Madras Road (coming from Indiranagar) by turning right under the KR Puram Hanging flyover will know how much of a pain it is in peak commuting hours. Between 8 and 10 AM it is filled with full size trucks, tractor trailers, cars and bikes all moving at snails' pace. It normally isn't a jam per se, but a go-slow because of the sudden funneling action of the OMR towards ORR. For a guy on a bike with a jacket and helmet on, it can become gruelling! The hot sun compounded by hot exhausts means a really frustrating time and a perspiration soaked helmet and jacket. It can take anywhere between 5 and 20 minutes to clear that stretch. And sometimes the jams are so long that it extends right over the flyover (of the ORR from Banaswadi joining the OMR). I realised that this jam is mainly for those intending to turn right under the flyover. Those climbing the Hanging Bridge have no issues at all! They just continue, clearing the jam quickly. So this morning as I was approaching KR Puram, I made a mental note to take the hanging bridge and then figure a way to come back to the ORR. When I approached KR Puram, I noticed the jam was not too great, but since I anyhow had not much work in office, decided to explore a new route nevertheless.. to use on some busy day. Continued over the hanging bridge after some last minute mind switches! Crossed it after years! The ramp approaching it seemed overly undulating! Anyway, I crossed the bridge to notice a gap in the median as soon as I descended on the other side, I noticed a gap in the median and vehicles crossing over to the right! "Just what I was looking for" I thought, taking it. Turned around and this time I didn't climb back onto the flyover (afterall I didn't wanna go back). Took the service road besides it. Kept going till I reached a virtual dead end (that was comprised of the KR Puram Railway Station and the ITI Factory). Saw most riders taking a detour towards the left though (in the direction I too wanted to head to). Followed them. The road soon disappeared and it turned out to be a muddy stone filled path. But many 2-wheelers where headed in the same direction, so I followed. With the tracks on my right, I could see the vehicles slowing down. Soon they were trickling into what seemed like a "Sea of Helmets"! Wow it looked nice. Shiny (mostly black) helmets all glowing in an unusually hot sun! I so badly wanted to take out my cam and shoot the sight, but couldn't. Finally I noticed that everyone was waiting to cross the tracks. Sure enough a train passed by as we waited. Now what I thought was these guys were waiting for the train to pass (like most riders in Bangalore do when they have to cross an underpass with a passenger train goes overhead... to avoid any falling <you know what>). But I could notice a trickle of vehicles coming in from the other side. Soon this trickle stopped and people from my side began crossing under. By the time I reached the underpass, I was shocked! It was NOT an underpass! It was a narrow gutter/storm drain. Wide enough for only one bike at a time to pass, it was a dark, dingy wet tunnel (missed the bats). Barely wide enough to let your handlebar and shoulders thru' and also tall enough not to scrape your helmet (I was ducking anyhow). Was fun crossing it! Infact when I emerged into daylight on the otherside, I was suprised to see another similar line of vehicles waiting to come in. But what surprised me even further was the kind of patience and cooperation the commuters showed towards each other. There was absolute silence with no honking/shouting on either side, even considering the buildup of a "sea of helmets". This is very unBangalorean in traffic sense! Almost like Europe! Riders on each side would patiently wait for an entire crowd on one side to clear off before they could begin entering the tunnel themselves! Very organised and cooperative. I was so amused by the whole experience that when I got out, I pulled over, fished out my back up cam (that I now always carry along) and took some snaps... thinking of this post as I reached office! Take a look: http://www.flickr.com/photos/glifford/2695588520/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/glifford/2694769897/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/glifford/2694770021/ And for those of you who want to see the Map location, check out the map on: http://picasaweb.google.com/glifford/RidingThroughAStormDrain Well I don't think I saved any time, may have spent more actually. But sure had fun and may revisit this route whenever I find KR Puram too crowded! Cheers, Glifford.
