On the roads of Bengaluru, it is the pedestrian who is at the greatest risk of incurring an injury or ending up as fatality, while negotiating their way. Despite enjoying only partial success as a safe means of crossing roads, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has been enthusiastically promoting skywalks. Out of the total of 160 skywalks planned across the city, 40 are currently operational, and 20 more are under construction. At least Rs 2-3 crore are spent on building each of these skywalks, and many of them are built on a public-private partnership (PPP) model. While the BBMP says skywalks are built for the safety and convenience of pedestrians, experts believe that they do not serve this purpose.

“The idea is that the vehicles are moving on the street, and it’s difficult for pedestrians to walk across, so let’s give them a skywalk. So instead of taking 60 steps across the street, now they have to go 60 steps up, 60 steps across, and then walk down 60 steps. I think this is absolutely broken logic, because the street belongs to the pedestrians as much as it belongs to the vehicle,” explains Srinivas Alavilli from Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy.

He feels that people with disabilities or those with knee problems cannot take the stairs and elevators which are installed at some of the skywalks are mere ornaments as they do not function. “Most of the skywalks are ugly urban furniture. Nobody uses them, because they don’t serve any purpose. And many times, they become hubs of crime and illegal activity. Instead of skywalks, they should have better pedestrian infrastructure like zebra crossings and walk signs at all intersections,” he says.

Others like Genesia Rodrigues question the mindset regarding mobility in cities. Genesia, who is a senior research associate at Urban Works, a think tank offering mobility solutions, says, “We are obsessed with words like ‘speed’ and ‘acceleration.’ We are only thinking about how fast we can move and whether unobstructed vehicular movement or signal-free movement can be provided. We need to change our thinking and mindset. We want lively streets. We want streets that are safe for our kids to play in, safe for anyone to walk, safe for anyone to cross the road. And that’s when I think the government will also hear and understand the citizen’s needs,” she says.

TNM finds out if Bengalureans really use the city’s skywalks and checks the condition of several of these structures in the city.

Watch: Bengaluru skywalks: A status check