Commercial Street, the shopping hub in the city’s Central Business District has received a cobblestone makeover under the Smart City Project. The shop-owners and shoppers on the commercial street say they are glad that the BBMP undertook the infrastructural work, however, some members of the Bangalore Commercial Street Association (BCA) said that parking for the customers, in the area is still an issue.
It was announced in 2019 that Commercial Street will be beautified under the Smart City Project and the works began in May, 2020 but were delayed due to the pandemic.
On July 23, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, Revenue Minister R Ashoka along with Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Chief Gaurav Gupta and other officials visited Bengaluru’s Commercial Street to inspect the infrastructural works undertaken there. Chief Minister Yediyurappa speaking about the beautification and inspection of other streets said, “I have inspected infrastructure works across the city today along with my colleagues and the works on 36 places including Commercial Street are near completion. Bengaluru should gain recognition ” He also added that the “qualitative” work by the officials is commendable.
Shop-owners are hoping that the pedestrian-friendly makeover of the street will bring in more people. Sairam, who owns a tailoring and accessory shop on the street told TNM that he’s glad the civic body undertook the project. “Those who come for shopping want to do so peacefully. The street has been in a dilapidated condition for very long. We are thankful that the association pushed for repair works of the street and the BBMP took it up. We are expecting more foot-fall now that the street is beautified and will be made pedestrian-friendly,” he added.
Faizan, a shopowner at Commercial Street and a member of the BCA, said that the parking issue has still not been resolved. He added that while pedestrian-friendly beautification was a good initiative, they still have issues with parking. “During the pandemic, we want people to stay safe while shopping. Although we’ll be giving shuttling services, it is impossible for many of us to constantly monitor who uses the services, moreover, only one person can travel. As a family, it will be a hassle. Moreover, not everyone will hail a cab, some will use their transport and having lost out on parking spaces around including the Army ground parking space, it will be a challenge to accommodate shoppers,” he added.