Mood Meter: Fed up of potholes? Think of the plight of rick & bus drivers

The monsoons bring us respite from the heat but the effects it has on the badly constructed roads on Pune are back breaking to say the least. Whether you are sitting comfortably in your air-conditioned car or riding pavilion on a fancy bike, the jerks and jolts felt on Pune roads affects us all. With potholes the size of craters on the surface of the moon, we asked people who make their living out of driving on these cumbersome roads about the troubles faced by them.

Bandu PandeyBandu Pandey (tempo driver, delivers gas cylinders): Driving on roads with potholes is like playing with your life. It is so risky. I have been driving a tempo for 30 years and it gets worse year by year. Even if I am careful of a pothole, the vehicle next to me will splash me with water. We can fall sick also because of this, the conditions are so bad.

 

Gasininath SanatGasininath Sanat (PMT bus driver): Now that the rains have set in, it’s becoming worse with the traffic. The chances of accidents are higher now, the vehicles in front suddenly brake because of potholes. This is such a dangerous situation and we are responsible for a bus full of passengers.

 

Ramdev KambleRaman Gangawane (tempo driver, delivers gas cylinders): We start work in the morning at 9 and we are driving all-day. We have a lot of problems because of potholes on the roads, especially when the tyre gets stuck or there is a puncture. It takes us at least half an hour to repair it. Our entire day goes travelling on these roads, they should be repaired that’s all we want.

Raman GangawaneRamdev Kamble (tempo driver, delivers gas cylinders): I have been driving the tempo for 25 years now,the increasing traffic jams have made the situation worse. The jerks we experience because of these potholes results in back pain and damages the tempo also. Now if the tyre gets stuck or punctured, the repair money is to be paid by me only. How unfair is it? The government should use good material to make the roads, to avoid repairing it again and again. I have realised that our complains fall on deaf ears, so there’s no point.

Riyaz KhanRiyaz Khan (autorickshaw driver): The vehicle goes for a toss because of these potholes and then who do we complain to? If we go to the police they say go to the corporation, make us run from one place to another. If a place can be reached in 15 minutes it will take us half an hour. It is a waste of time and money. The back pain we face only we know.

Sanjay KhedkarSanjay Khedkar (PMT bus driver): If the bus gets damaged because of potholes, the PMT takes a while then to repair the bus also. The passengers yell at us when there is a sudden jerk, “Aap kaise chalate hai!” (How do you drive?). This is not our fault, along with the back pain caused by the potholes we have to listen to the passengers as well.

Shyam SalveSham Salve (autorickshaw driver): The roads in Pune are already narrow and there isn’t enough space to drive. To add to this, potholes makes it even harder, as you have to dodge them. I get tired because of this and it aggravates my back pain. The government needs to start paying attention to bad roads.

Zeenat Tinwala