Trucking unicorn to ditch B'luru tech corridor over crumbling roads

The challenges of Bengaluru's infrastructure and the growing frustrations among citizens and companies have once again come to light, even as Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar assured that contractors have been given a final deadline of November to fill the city's potholes and ensure smooth traffic flow.

- PEERZADA ABRAR & AVIK DAS

Rajesh Yabaji, co-founder and chief executive of online trucking platform BlackBuck, announced the company's decision to relocate from its Bellandur office along the city's Outer Ring Road (ORR), citing increasing commute time and deteriorating road conditions as key reasons for the move.

"ORR (Bellandur) has been our 'office home' for the last 9 years, but it's now very, very hard to continue here, so we have decided to move out," Yabaji posted on X.

His statement highlights familiar concerns about Bengaluru's infrastructure: Roads full of potholes, persistent traffic congestion, insufficient public transport options, and a slow pace of metro railway development, all contributing to challenging daily commutes.

For over a decade, the ORR has been the subject of ridicule among those familiar with the city's crumbling infrastructure.

The road flanks gleaming stateof-the-art business parks housing global giants such as JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Walmart, Microsoft, Google, and IBM. Yet beyond the corporate complexes, the reality of poor road conditions and traffic congestion remains a pressing issue.