We’ve normalised the crawl so thoroughly, we’ve forgotten to question why we’re stuck in it.

I seldom go back to the city I called home for over 35 years. But on the rare days I do, I’m reminded—loud and clear—why I made certain life choices.

Eight years ago, I moved to the outskirts. Not as an escape, but as a conscious shift.

I chose not to have children—another deliberate decision in a world where people complain about overpopulation, yet rarely take responsibility for it.

I invested in an electric bike—not just to reduce emissions, but to take up less space on the road. Because yes, one less car (was very tempted to add “one less human” in the previous paragraph) does matter.

And yet, even with those choices, the system still seeps in.

Today, I spent two hours biking 26 km into the city. Then another 75 minutes to cover just 12 km by cab. That’s not a commute. That’s the famous Pink Floyd song with a twist – Uncomfortably Dumb.

But the numbers say: this is normal.

In 2024, Bengaluru ranked third globally for traffic slowdown. It now takes 34 minutes to travel just 10 km—an extra 50 seconds from last year. During peak hours, speeds drop to 14–15 km/h. At Silk Board junction, vehicles inch along at 4.5 km/h—slower than walking.

We register SUVs into this.

We build flyovers to get on top of it—only to land back in it.

And somehow, we still act surprised.

Compare that with:

• Dhaka: 4.8 km/h average—slower than a cyclist on bad brakes.

• New York City: Over 100 hours lost per driver per year in gridlock.

If you can’t fix the problem, step out of the problem.

That’s what I did—and I know not everyone can. But some can—and perhaps won’t. If even a fraction of those who have the privilege to decentralise their lives choose to, it could ease the pressure. It creates demand for better-designed, self-sufficient communities. It reduces the volume feeding the monster.

Because this isn’t just about congestion. It’s about how we design our lives—and how we let our cities be designed around cars, not people.

We’re not helpless. Other cities have turned things around.

Dedicated bus lanes, walkable neighborhoods, congestion pricing, transit-first planning—not glamorous, but proven.

So the real question isn’t just how long we sit in traffic. It’s how long we’re willing to accept this as normal.

Because this isn’t just time lost. Its imagination stalled.

PS: This post was written and published while sitting in traffic.