Riding Safety Gear Within City Ride

Bike riding gear is important on highways, but is also important on city rides. If you are riding more than 20km everyday on Indian roads, then you should consider wearing riding gears everyday to office. It might sound ridiculous. But with the same logic people laughed at wearing helmet some 20 years back. And some still do on wearning them on long highway journeys.

You may laugh on it, but even in one incident if it saves you serious injuries then its worth the pain of wearing them everyday. I do understand the pain of wearing them in hot weather but I cannot emphasize more on its importance.

Tips On Saving Money On Fuel

How to buy fuel

1. Buy gasoline during coolest time of day - early morning or late evening is best. During these times gasoline is densest. Keep in mind - gas pumps measure volumes of gasoline, not densities of fuel concentration. Fuel bunks are tipped up with fuel @ 23c
2. Choose type and brand of gasoline carefully. Certain brands provide you with greater economy because of better quality. Use the brands which "seem" most beneficial. I would recommend shell in India. Reason being, its most pure and full of all others.
3. Tank full/Empty. The emptier the vehicles tank, the fuel will vaporise more. Try keep you tank more than half full. Avoid 5Ltr top up if fuel capacity is 40Lts.
4. Avoid filling gas tank to top. Overfilling results in sloshing over and out of tank. Never fill gas tank past the first "click" of fuel nozzle, if nozzle is automatic.

Selecting A Good Helmet

A motorcycle helmet serves two important goals: first, it protects your head in a crash. Second, but equally importantly, it protects your head and keeps you comfortable while riding.

How does it work

The helmet has a hard outer layer - polycarbonate, fibre glass or composites - meant to absorb and spread impacts. It resists penetration by sharp objects and the shell disperses the forces of the impact.
Between your skin and this shell is an energy absorbing layer, usually polystyrene, that is designed to gather this energy and self-destruct, transferring as little force as possible to the head.
The polystyrene is covered with a comfort-oriented layer of fabric, which is sometimes removable for washing. Add a good, scratch resistant visor and a secure retention  system, and you have a helmet.

Types of Helmets

There are four basic types of helmets: full-face, 3/4 helmets, half helmets, and flip-face (or modular) helmets.

	Full-face helmets Full-face helmets wrap fully around your head, and offer the best protection both while riding, and in a crash. All full-face helmets that I'm aware of have a flip-up visor, which is typically removeable without tools. This is the type of helmet I own. This is the only type of helmet I recommend.
	Flip-face (modular) helmets Flip-up (or modular) helmets are a compromise between the protection of a full-face helmet, and the convenience of a 3/4 helmet. Being a compromise, they are neither as protective as a full-face, nor as convenient as a 3/4. However, if you can't stand the thought of a full-face helmet because of glasses, or being able to talk to people with your helmet on, a flip-up may be a good choice for you. I am personally undecided on them, but stick with a full-face because I don't feel hampered by the design. A good flip-face helmet is a far better choice than a 3/4, so always pick the modular if you feel a full-face isn't an acceptable choice.
	3/4 helmets The three-quarter helmet seems to have been very popular in the 1970s, when there was a huge surge in motorcycle ownership in the US. I've read that full face helmets of that time were bulky and heavy, making a 3/4 helmet a much more comfortable choice. This is no longer the case, and 3/4 helmets are not a wise choice. They leave your chin and face exposed, both to oncoming objects like rocks and bugs, and to the pavement in a crash. Take a look at this diagram, which shows where crashed helmets took hits. Note how the areas with the largest percentages are on the chinbar. Note how a 3/4 helmet has no chinbar.
	Half helmets Half helmets, also called "brain buckets" and "puddin' cups" offer very little protection either in a crash or while riding. The market for these helmets seems to be cruiser riders who want to project a tough or scofflaw image. They have the greatest feeling of freedom of all types of DOT-approved helmets. If you value your life at all, avoid half helmets.

Park and Rides - Enablers of Public Transport

Park and ride stations are popular concept in developed countries, where you drive your vehicle to nearest bus/metro station, park  the vehicle and catch bus/metro. This not only increases the promotion of use of public transport, also reduces the stress of driving around. Finding a parking option within the city is a daunting task. Citizens sometimes feel its easier to catch auto/bus rather find a parking place in Bangalore.

 In last few years, Bangalore has been developing bus/metro terminals (under JNNURM) under similar concept. They are also called traffic & transit management centers.  45 such centers are supposed to come up in Bangalore. Such almost/working centers are at  Jayanagar, Vijayanagar, Banashankari, Koramangala, Shantinagar, White Field (ITPL), Kengeri, Yeshwanthpur, Domlur & Banneraghatta.

Marcopolo: A New Class

I am writing this while sitting in marcopolo. Volvo buses are a hit in bangalore. Primary reasons being

•  Agility - It has extremely good acceleration
•  Pleasant interiors 
•  Sound and pollution proof
•  Good gentry and less crowded

Tata's have in general done a good job on Marcopolo as its definately bring a different class of buses in India. In Delhi, old buses are rapidly being replaced by new Maropolo (CNG). Wide an big glass windows gives a good look.  I believe introducing marcopolo is generating/adding a new class of riders. Although once you take few rides you would realize Marcopolo's are nowhere close to replacing volvo buses. Although there were news articles of stopping further procurement of volvo buses as:-

• volvo's are double the cost
• less fuel efficient 
• higher maintenance cost
• Import cost added as tax benefit has been removed.

Extreme steps - need of the hour

Illegally parked vehicles on road is a norm in Bangalore. If you are a regular commuter, by now you would be so used to that you would have forgotten - oh these vehicles are illegally parked.

Illegally parked vehicles are a major cause of creating chaos and unnecessary jams on roads. In Bangalore, a two lane road becomes single with heavy traffic of trucks of flowing.
Illegally parked vehicles are a cause to make slower traffic move on right lanes. All the tractors, by default would be on right lane. Unless the vehicle is agile enough it would be on right lane.
 Illegally parked vehicles are cause making free flowing traffic impossible.Because you can't overtake. Have change lanes frequently.


Hats of  to "Mayor of Vilnius" who went to the extreme step to crush illegally parked Mercedes with a tank.

When citizen do not understand. Paying fine 100rs in Bangalore is so OK, like nothing. In Delhi, they atleast used to tow the vehicle, so the person will have some pain to go to police station and pay heavy penalty. There could be a scratch or two as well.

I seriously wish Bangalore traffic police (BTP) atleast starts to tow the vehicles or put wheel jammers, if not taking such extreme step.

To be honest I favor this Mayor of Vilnius, and hat's off to him for taking such bold step.

Follow traffic rules, be safe and let others be safe.
http://bangalore.safemovingtraffic.in/

Reevaluating driving comfort

Driving pleasure @ Bangalore City

I am writing this from 20yrs of driving experience and real wide range of vehicles (BMW to Nano). I am trying to reevaluate / explore best (convenient) way of commuting in Bangalore on a daily basis for all practical purpose. In turn, exploring the meaning of driving convenience for Bangalore. Reason being, earlier I regularly drove my SUV everywhere, later when I moved to hatch, I almost refused to go back to suv and now I find bike to be the best medium.

If you are a daily commuter then I am sure you would understand the pain points, which I need not highlight.

Assuming, you are driving yourself and your commute does consist of heavy peak hour Bangalore traffic.

• Fuel efficient : for smoother wallet
• Small turning radius for U turns : U turns being inevitable in Bangalore
• Easy public parking: Most general places lack proper parking places
• Quick Overtaking: With all kinds of vehicles on road, you need it all the time.
• Relaxed driving / Alertness: Has the vehicle anything to do with alertness. Yes one needs to be more alert when driving SUV than a bike.
• Respect: Sure, that's one reason people drive expensive cars around city while they have others lined up.
• Safety: At the end of the day one wants to be safe home.

Bangalore traffic - a Perspective

Bangalore – the city that mesmerizes people by its beautiful gardens and weather … and maybe unintentionally spices up lives of people on the roads, is the city I live in. I have been here for more than three years now, and now I think I have a better understanding of quirks of this city.


Many people would have a list of their pet peeves against the Bangalore traffic, mine is a list of points which reminds me that there can be no other city like this:


1. The magical One-Ways: It’s like Alice’s wonderland … one slip of foot, and you keep going deeper into the rabbit hole…one one-way leading you to another and so on and so forth. The journey may unfold sometimes pleasant, sometimes unpleasant scenarios

You are liable for your own safety

When you are on Indian roads, people generally have a tendency - The other will stop for me. Indian specially  are big risk takers when on road. Remember when on road, you are liable for your own safety. You need to constantly be aware of  traffic - driver psychology and vehicular/ road condition and take proactive steps.
Check this truck out in below pic on bangalore roads (Varthur road) .

With knife like pointed rods coming out of the truck. If traffic behind it is not careful of length of rods judgement. They may bump into these. It is not easy to make out the length of these rods at first. And what if you are changing lanes .....!!

Road safety – what can I do?

I was talking to my brother the other day, and he stated talking about road safety and how he felt something should be done about it. My immediate response was – Well… road safety … umm… there is nothing much you can do about it …. Most of the people in Bangalore are educated people and hence giving them information about rules and safety measures may not give you the desired results.

My brother said – this is exactly the point – most of the Bangaloreans are well educated people, and still we have one of the worst traffic and accident statistics. Well… I said… there is a simple reason for that – the road infrastructure in Bangalore does not support the increasing number of vehicles on road… hence the accidents.

Road Rage - Bengaluru?

Every fast paced growing city has its own problems. One of the problems include road rage. In Bangalore road rage is on a high.With new villages coming under the category of town, the villagers have got money but not regular work. With the absence of good regular paid work, people are swayed by high testosterone.

Helmet On Head - Safety or Just Another Traffic Rule

Being an everyday rider, I understand the importance of safety on bike. In bangalore wearing a helmet by the rider is compulsory, if not fine is imposed. But if you notice on bangalore roads ( more than 50% traffic consists of motor bikes), the riders just wear the helmet for the sake of it, just to avoid traffic fines. The straps are open. Hence wearing one is absolutely useless and is like wearing nothing.

So next time you are riding with HELMET STRAP OPEN , like below,

then its like wearing this.

Next time ensure to correctly tighten the straps

www.safemovingtraffic.in

How Difficult Is It To Follow Traffic Rules?

In US and other developed countries, 90% people follow lane discipline. In general, most people follow traffic rules. If you have been a driver in both worlds (developed/developing), you would find dramatic differences.
 In India, people do not either know the rules or do not care about them. They work on the symptom 'me first -I am smart'.
When you are on road, free space, empty red light crossing are all temptations to the above symptom. They give into this temptation to jump a red light all the time without realizing the repercussions.
'There is space for taking U turn, and my bike can go, then I will simply take it'.'I don't care what rules says, who's there to watch.'

Here is an attempt to educate the people.

http://safemovingtraffic.in/