[McLaren Rulez]

@toroid, you handled that situation beautifully - you remained calm and spoke very well. I wish I could remain half as cool and collected as you do.

The city absolutely should be criticised when these things happen. Same goes for any other place in India or the world. The icing on the cake is that all this happens in front of a cop that didn't even try to do his job. Lazy, stupid and incompetent but sadly, will probably not even get a slap on the wrist.

[bnik9]

Originally Posted by toroid

I received a call in the morning from Traffic Inspector Mohammad Siraj, requesting me to visit the Madiwala Police Station at 11 AM. I was initially hesitant but decided to go, figuring it was worth a couple of hours to hold the biker accountable. At 11, Constable Shabeer called to inform me that the biker was running late and that he'd let me know when to come, so I wouldn't waste time.

I finally arrived at 12:30. The biker tried to confront me outside the station, still arrogant, saying, "Nothing is going to happen. You're just wasting your time. The most they'll do is fine me ₹500. Police won't listen to an outsider." I chose not to engage with him.

Inside the station, Officer Vinay began by asking both of us what happened. The biker claimed he was just standing on the road when my car, which he alleged was speeding at over 60 km/h, nearly missed hitting him by a few centimeters. The officer gave him a stern lecture about assulting my car, stating that even if there had been a collision, the proper course of action would have been to file an official complaint.

Officer Vinay explained that they could only address the traffic violations and suggested that if I wanted to take further action, they could help me file an FIR with the civil police. I decided not to stretch the matter and keep it limited to traffic violations. I submitted a written complaint, requesting the biker be fined for the following offenses:

1. RECKLESS/DANGEROUS DRIVING TWO WHEELER
2. Two wheeler without rearview mirror
3. Wearing a half helmet
4. ZIG ZAG DRIVING
5. OBSTRUCTING TRAFFIC
6. STOPING ON The Intersection

They assured me that the biker would be penalized for all these violations. As I was leaving, Officer Vinay commended me for taking the time to address the issue, noting that someone has to teach people like the biker a lesson. I hope he avoids such behaviuor in the future.

Great job! @toroid and @SS-Traveller

I only wish the constable in duty during the time of the incident should have been included in this meeting and given a similar/strong lecture on how to handle such cases.

I faced a similar incident during my last trip to Pondy in 2022. I wish I was a member in team-bhp back then to share the video and incident but now it's long gone.

So the incident goes like this,

A senior citizen couple on an activa stops my car at a junction and the man then hurries towards the car banging the windshield and door. I was with my wife and kid(was asleep at that time). As I slide down my window he was ready to punch but stopped and abused left and right in local language.

We were shocked as to what's happening and tried to explain the man we didn't do anything wrong and even ready to show the recordings but he was in no mood to listen but abused and left.

We had to park the car aside to understand what happened and went through the Dashcam footage from front and back cameras for past half hour of the incident.

What we found was,

1. We overtook their activa through middle line when they were parallel to another car with about 40-50kmph within the city limits with not so wide lanes.
2. I didn't honk(I mostly avoid) but the elderly man was expecting it - I understood this from his shouting.
3. We didn't find any visible reaction from them as we overtook their bike from rear cam footage.
At the end, they scolded as they felt we were rash driving.

Our realisations,

We became culprits to their annoyance and mood at that time.

Installing dash cam is a MUST! And my wife was happy for the 15k well spent on the camera!( She was not into driving and felt I was overspending on a simple camera)

[dass]

Originally Posted by Vikash Kumawat

Why every second road rage video is from Bangalore ? I have seen a lot of videos of road rages videos from Bangalore. Cant imagine driving a car without a dashcam in Bangalore.

I think the answer to your question is in your comment itself. The number of people with a dashcam seem significantly higher here. I have one myself, both front and rear.

[ac 427]

Kudos to @toroid for following up and pursuing. This will teach the biker a lesson and more importantly it is a reassuring sign that the system (read cops) are with you.

best,
ac

[Oxy]

Really well done @toroid. I hope all of us take this as a learning, to stand up and try to do the bare minimum when we are not at fault.

[Rohit_Quad]

Originally Posted by Vikash Kumawat

Why every second road rage video is from Bangalore ? I have seen a lot of videos of road rages videos from Bangalore. Cant imagine driving a car without a dashcam in Bangalore. How these local goons behave with another state registered cars No Offence to Bangalore people, its really a serious issue

Here are my 2 cents - I have been travelling to Bangalore (from HYD) since I was kid (have a lot of family there, few working in the Airforce), but since the early 2000's I started driving there to visit my cousins, as we were moving out of the parental houses and living separately. I always loved every bit of the road trip from Hyderabad to Bangalore as well as the vibe and the culture there. Heck, I even took my wife on 'a surprise birthday first road trip' to Bangalore, back in 2019. But since the last couple of years, every trip to Bangalore was accompanied with a sour 'Road Incident'.

The latest (June 2024) was a simple parking scene. I just stopped to the very side, on a empty stretch of road (read- not at all busy), in front of a restaurant valet parking desk, to pick my wife up. With in a few seconds, a flower vendor on a luna comes behind the car and starts honking. I did not pay heed, as there was at least a 2 lorry width road beside me. And within a few seconds, he comes to the front and blocks my car, and starts shouting. I rolled down the window and asked what the problem was, and he starts abusing in Kannada. From what i could make out was that, he needs to park his luna on the footpath to go deliver flowers, and that my car was in the way to climb the footpath (there was a cut/ damaged portion in the footpath ). He spoke in Kannada and I spoke in Telugu, so I smiled and said how on earth was I supposed to guess, that there was a spot there and that is where he needs to climb the footpath to park? There was no 2 wheeler parking and it was a normal footpath where a lot of people were walking. He still ended up shouting abuses, making a big scene and almost rested his luna on my bonnet. All this happened within a couple of minutes, even before the valet driver came to pick up the car. By this time my wife came, and a Bolero which was right behind me unloading something, reversed and left. So I did the same, as the road was empty and he did not notice the Bolero had left as he was still sitting on the Luna, trying to make an even bigger scene. If feel if I could not have reversed and left, and if there was traffic blocking by way, the scene would have been different. I am not sure if it is because mine is a new car with TS plates (my older car was a Fiesta, with AP plates, nothing happened with that car, but it was before 2022) or if thats how things became there now. And this was nothing compared to what happened on the previous road trip in January/ February near Nandi hills.

[libranof1987]

Note from Support: Do NOT let the debate slip into a local vs. outsider argument. Any further posts on this theme will be deleted. We are all mature to ensure the discussion is healthy, rational and does not reek of bias or regionalism. Thank you!

[toroid]

Originally Posted by toroid

I received a call in the morning from Traffic Inspector Mohammad Siraj, requesting me to visit the Madiwala Police Station at 11 AM. I was initially hesitant but decided to go, figuring it was worth a couple of hours to hold the biker accountable. At 11, Constable Shabeer called to inform me that the biker was running late and that he'd let me know when to come, so I wouldn't waste time.

Other than tweet from SS-Traveller, I had messaged BLR traffic police WhatsApp helpline +919480801800



To my surprise, I received an acknowledgment from the helpline within 10 minutes, followed by a call from the traffic inspector at Madiwala police station just 15 minutes later. He even thought I was still at the location and was ready to come there personally. I honestly didn’t expect such a prompt response. Kudos to the Bangalore Traffic Police!

Give this helpline a try next time you are in similar situation.

[rajivr1612]

Originally Posted by toroid

Give this helpline a try next time you are in similar situation.

Any action taken against the errant traffic constable? If not, then the next prey will face similar consequences as you did.
Not blaming you in anyway for not asking or following up, you have done your best. It was for the officer who contacted you to also call up the errant constable and rebuke him for his attitude.

[DriverLess]

Any kind of road rage gives me chills. Situation is worsening at an alarming rate and enforcement has become a joke.

Yesterday I faced an incident in Bangalore. Sometimes you get a feeling that something bad is going to happen and this was one of those days when I was in a state of heightened alertness. This was on a road that I frequently use, I was driving slower than usual and my kid was with me in the car. Yes! there is a reason for driving slower.

I was driving slower to avoid making any sudden movement or braking. Was using left most part of the road as possible to give way to anyone who is in a hurry. There are shops on both sides of road, street vendors everywhere, no footpath, haphazard parking on both sides, two wheelers driving with kids without helmets, auto-rickshaw's are zigzag driving. To add to this chaos, it started raining and some utility company had dug/left fresh mud on the road.

I think folks behind me did not like the fact that I was driving cautiously. 2 two-wheelers excessively honked and overtook me from both side. After passing me, they both turned back started abusing me for driving slow. Just then, one guy had a fall due to mud/rain and he touched the other guy who also fell. I could stop safely without any incident. I and others helped them. But according to them I was responsible for their fall. I did not argue, but because my car did not touch each of them I could leave without further escalation.

Why has aggressive driving become a habit for everyone? Why can't folks realize that all the short-cuts, speed, jumping signals, abusing other road users is only going to save them just few minutes. But at what cost ?

IMHO, driving safe for the given conditions should be most important rule we should follow.

[arnav17]

Originally Posted by toroid

Road rage in Bangalore seems to be escalating.. A biker jumped in front of my car without looking into his mirrors (there weren't any).

The policeman saying "nanagenu gotthu" was heights!
Kudos to you for pursuing the matter and getting justice. It somehow looked like the biker did something on purpose from the beginning when he turned near the break in the metro pillar.

[shyampsunder]

Originally Posted by arnav17

The policeman saying "nanagenu gotthu" was heights!
Kudos to you for pursuing the matter and getting justice. It somehow looked like the biker did something on purpose from the beginning when he turned near the break in the metro pillar.

Invest in a dashcam, always record conversations on video, call 112 immediately, let the police and goons know that you are not going to take this lightly and settle.

Hats off to the calm composure of the driver and standing the ground as well as taking the time to ensure that the two wheeler rider is booked.

[rajathv8]

Originally Posted by toroid

Other than tweet from SS-Traveller, I had messaged BLR traffic police WhatsApp helpline +919480801800

Dear toroid, this is a victory not only for you but for all of us! Thank you for taking the time out to see this through and educate everyone on the forum.

I have been at the recieving end of a similar standoff a year or so ago. I have saved the BTP WhatsApp details for future.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

How do we avoid a similar situation in the future? By leaving sufficient lateral crash avoidance space when passing other (especially stationary) vehicles - at least one door width or 1.5 metres - along with a short toot of the horn to alert the distracted rider/driver.

bang on sir

IMHO this was avoidable but Toroid should have seen this coming - esp given the defensive driving lens you have rightly applied.

One needs to leave much more space for such a two wheeler or any other vehicle. (In australia there is a big fine for driving your car within 2 m of a cyclist for example)

He should’ve swerved hard to keep distance from the rider.

That said, great job standing up to the bully rider and pursuing your case. I would’ve wanted him to do community service - spend time not just money!

What the rider did - absolutely shameful.
The policeman is just a waste of public money

[toroid]

Originally Posted by toroid

Kudos to the Bangalore Traffic Police!

I think I spoke too soon.
The biker hasn't been penalised yet.

After leaving the police station, a constable called and asked me to update Twitter, saying my issue had been resolved. I did as requested.

However, the next day, I checked the BTP website and saw no penalty listed for the biker. I followed up with the constable, who started defending the biker, claiming he had already apologized to the inspector and suggesting I should let it go. When I asked if I would be let off with an apology for running a red light or driving the wrong way, he said he didn't have the authority to penalize the biker and told me to speak directly to the inspector.

I called the inspector, who initially said he’d look into it. The next day, when I called again, he asked me to return to the police station to file a law and order case against the biker. I insisted he take action on the traffic violation complaint I’d already filed. He then mentioned they’d asked the biker to return to the station since he hadn’t brought his scooter the first time. After that, he hung up. I've tried calling the inspector 3-4 times this week, but he's not picking up.

This is the sad reality of Bangalore traffic police. They go out of their way to catch minor traffic violators and meet their revenue targets, but they won't take a simple action to make our roads safer.

Rather than discouraging the biker, this incident will give him more confidence that there are no consequences of such actions.

In a last attempt to seek justice, I’ve tweeted asking for an update on my previous complaint. Feel free to put your weight behind it.