The city is growing and one of the areas that has borne the brunt of its “progress” is Wellington Street, once popular because of its proximity to Richmond Road. People like Ashley Mascarenhas, who moved here 10 years ago to live within easy reach of some of the best schools in the city and other conveniences, are not so happy anymore.
The rising pollution, heaps of garbage, congestion and parking problems are making their lives miserable. “We decided to live here because it gave us easy access to offices and the best of schools which the Cantonment that Richmond Road is a part of, is famous for. But the novelty of living in the heart of the city has worn off as it has grown too crowded with even some homes giving way to commercial units," rues Ms Macarenhas, cursing the day the family decided to make the shift to Wellington Street.
While the people here do have good transportation and civic amenities like enough water for their needs, they have lost the peace and quiet the area once boasted off, despite being so close to the commercial hubs of M G Road and Brigade Road. So congested are the narrow lanes like Wellington Street today that there is virtually a battle for car parking on them , forcing the residents to be on alert at all times to make sure that their right of way out of their homes and apartments is not blocked in the process.
"My son has made it a habit to chase away the cars and other vehicles that try to park in front of our house. We also need to engage a security guard to ensure that entry and exit points of our building are not blocked. “We have a fight on our hands with strangers almost every day as a result," adds Ms Mascarenhas, revealing that at times the parking is so haphazard that the children get late for school. The mushrooming of restaurants also keeps the people up till late as the traffic doesn't seem to stop well into the night, she says.