Bengaluru Road Crisis Deepens With Hundreds Of Potholes
Bengaluru’s road maintenance problems have come into sharper focus after more than 350 potholes were reportedly identified along the Bommasandra–Jigani Link Road. The condition of the corridor highlights the infrastructure strain facing the city’s expanding industrial and residential outskirts, where deteriorating roads can increase travel times, vehicle damage and safety risks while affecting the movement of workers and goods.
The Bommasandra–Jigani stretch is an important connection within Bengaluru’s southern industrial belt. It serves commuters travelling between residential areas, manufacturing and industrial clusters, logistics facilities and employment centres. Extensive road damage can therefore have consequences beyond individual motorists.
Potholes become particularly problematic during the monsoon. Water can accumulate in damaged sections, making their depth difficult for drivers to judge and accelerating the deterioration of surrounding asphalt. Repeated repairs that address only the surface without resolving drainage or road-base problems can result in the same sections failing again. The issue also exposes a broader challenge in Bengaluru’s road network. The city has expanded rapidly into peripheral areas, but road infrastructure and maintenance systems have not always developed at the same pace. Industrial corridors carry heavy vehicles and high traffic volumes, placing additional stress on road surfaces. For businesses, poor roads can translate into higher logistics costs. Delivery vehicles may have to slow down or take longer alternative routes, while repeated vehicle damage can add to operating expenses. Delays also affect workers who depend on predictable journeys to reach employment centres. The problem is equally significant for people using two-wheelers, who are more exposed to uneven surfaces and sudden obstacles.
Poor pedestrian infrastructure along busy roads can further increase risks for workers walking between public transport stops and workplaces. Simply filling potholes is unlikely to provide a durable solution where underlying drainage and pavement problems remain unresolved. Road agencies need to identify why particular stretches repeatedly fail and coordinate resurfacing with stormwater improvements where necessary. The corridor also demonstrates why maintenance should be treated as a core component of infrastructure planning rather than an emergency response. A road that is regularly inspected and repaired before structural damage spreads is likely to cost less over its lifetime than one allowed to deteriorate until major reconstruction becomes necessary. There is an urban-development dimension as well. Bengaluru’s peripheral industrial zones are becoming increasingly important to the city’s economy, but their infrastructure needs to support both businesses and the communities living around them. Reliable roads, public transport, drainage and pedestrian facilities are essential to making these growth areas viable. The reported pothole count should therefore prompt a wider assessment of the corridor rather than a short-term patching exercise. Authorities could use road-condition surveys, drainage inspections and traffic data to prioritise sections requiring structural repairs.
For Bengaluru, the Bommasandra–Jigani road problem is a reminder that expanding the city’s economic footprint without maintaining its basic transport infrastructure creates hidden costs. Better preventive maintenance and coordinated road planning can help protect mobility, reduce vehicle-related costs and make industrial growth more resilient.
The immediate priority is to make the corridor safe and usable. The longer-term requirement is a maintenance system capable of keeping pace with Bengaluru’s growth rather than repeatedly responding after roads have already failed.
