Pune’s road crisis: As civic elections near, voters demand accountability from corporators

For many residents, the impact of bad roads goes beyond inconvenience, directly affecting productivity and safety. “Bad roads have made daily commuting extremely stressful. What should be a 20-minute journey often takes twice as long because of potholes, waterlogging and congestion. It affects productivity and safety, especially for two-wheelers and pedestrians,” says Sanjeevani Jain, a resident of Shankar Sheth Road, adding that she wants long-lasting repairs instead of temporary patchwork.

Poor maintenance and sanitation on busy roads have also resulted in accidents, particularly near market areas. “I met with an accident on the Mandai-Market Yard Road because waste from fruits, vegetables and flowers was not cleared from the road. The rotting waste made the surface slippery and dangerous for commuters,” says Sonal Rathod (42).

Residents say that pedestrians are among the worst affected by the city’s poor infrastructure, with footpaths either broken, encroached upon or simply non-existent in many areas. “Pune practically has no concept of footpaths, and pedestrians have no value,” says Ankita Sanghvi, principal of Innocent Times School, Aundh. “I do not let my elderly parents go for walks because it is too risky — footpaths are not meant for people to walk on. On Fergusson College Road, the entire footpath has been taken over by hawkers, leaving no space for pedestrians. On my commute to Hinjewadi via Sangvi Road, I have seen two-wheelers riding on footpaths during traffic jams. Even when foreigners requested them to move back to the main road, no one listened.”

She adds, “There are no safe pedestrian crossings, no walking facilities for senior citizens, and footpaths are full of potholes and open drainage covers. Why are they even called footpaths? Pune does not value pedestrians.”

What the numbers show

Pune has a road network of over 2,000 km, maintained by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). Civic records indicate that hundreds of crores of rupees are allocated annually for road construction and maintenance. Despite this, traffic police data has repeatedly linked potholes, uneven surfaces and poor drainage to road accidents, particularly involving two-wheelers, who form a significant share of Pune’s commuting population.

Urban mobility assessments and activist estimates suggest that average vehicular speeds in Pune have dropped to around 21 kmph during peak hours, reflecting the combined impact of poor road quality, congestion, frequent utility digging and inadequate coordination between civic departments.

Activists point to accountability and corruption

Civic activist Ajay Aggarwal of the Top Management Consulting Foundation (TMCF) says a lack of collective responsibility, apart from poor prioritisation, is among the key reasons behind Pune’s traffic woes. “The biggest reason for traffic slowness is the poor quality of roads and infrastructure. Roads, signals and lights are PMC’s responsibility, but no corporator or PMC official takes ownership of keeping these in order. Funds are available, but priorities are driven by vote-bank politics rather than systematic improvement,” Aggarwal says.

He adds that corporators often focus on small, visible works instead of citywide impact. “If corporators take pride in ensuring smooth traffic movement and cleanliness across their wards, and hold PMC teams accountable on the ground, things will automatically improve,” he says.

Veteran advocate Shrikant Shirole, who has witnessed Pune’s infrastructure evolve over five decades, identifies corruption as the central reason behind the city’s failing roads. Recalling the construction of Jungli Maharaj Road in 1975 using hot-mix technology, Shirole points out that the road has remained largely pothole-free for nearly 50 years — a testament to quality construction. “If Rs 15 lakh is sanctioned for a road and only half is actually spent on construction while the rest goes as kickbacks, you cannot expect quality,” Shirole says.

He stresses that corporators must think beyond election cycles. “There has to be short-term, mid-term and long-term planning. Corporators are trustees of public money and must think 20 to 30 years ahead. Corruption has no dividend — there should be zero tolerance, especially in road construction,” he adds.

As campaigning intensifies, residents say the condition of roads and pedestrian infrastructure will play a decisive role in how they vote. For many Punekars, the demand from the next civic body is clear: corporators who take responsibility not just for promises made during elections, but for infrastructure that lasts well beyond.