Jam packed: Bangalore has 31.27 lakh vehicles plying its congested roads as of March 30 file pic

Bangalore has 31.27 lakh vehicles plying its congested roads as of March 30, this year, according to a report by the State Transport Department.

The city has the highest rate of growing traffic with over one thousand vehicles added to its roads each day and might soon overtake Delhi which has 56.27 lakh vehicles.

The numbers

There are over 22 lakh two wheelers which constitute 72 per cent of vehicular traffic, making it the city with the second-highest number of two wheelers after Chennai.

Autos constitute just three per cent of the total number with 92,000. 5.05 lakh is the number of cars, which makes up 16 per cent of the total population and makes it the city with the least number of cars.
 
Buses, goods vehicles and tractors constitute nine per cent of vehicular traffic.

Inaccurate estimate

Traffic expert M N Srihari says that the numbers are much higher than indicated by the report. "The report only highlights the number of vehicles registered in the city. There are thousands of unregistered vehicles, as not all the people who migrate to Bangalore get their vehicle registered," he said.

"Around 1,050 new vehicles are registered every day," he added. He suggests that the government should make the issuing of driving licenses stricter, as one solution. "The government should reduce the number of driving licenses it issues. The public transport system should also be improved," he said.

However, the numbers do not seem to scare Bangaloreans who want to own a vehicle.

"The auto guys rip us off. Travelling by the company cab is not an option either since I have to leave one and a half hours before my shift starts, when I can reach the office in just 20 minutes. That's why I bought a car. I hate the jams, but you get used to them," said Asha D, a BPO employee.

Manish Kumar, a techie is indifferent about the increasing number of vehicles on roads. "Everyone loves to own a bike and I love mine. When I joined work, I bought a bike. I wasn't thinking about the number of vehicles. It doesn't matter," he said.

City	Total (in lakh)	Two wheelers	Cars	Autos	Other
Bangalore	31.27	72%	16%	3%	9%
Delhi	56.27	64%	31%	1%	4%
Mumbai	16.32	53%	29%	7%	11%
Chennai	26.52	77%	16%	2%	5%
Hyderabad	16.31	68%	17%	4%	11%