Pune Commuters Struggle With Poor Street Signage, Call Navigation A Daily Challenge

Pune: Commuters in Pune continue to face difficulties due to inadequate and confusing street signage across the city. Residents point out that signboards are either too small, sometimes broken or missing, or lack proper standardisation, making navigation difficult. Compared to other Indian cities, Pune’s road signage is seen as far behind. The demand for clearer, larger, and standardised signboards has been raised multiple times, but little has changed on the ground.

Citizens Vent Frustration Online

The people of Pune took this matter to social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and wrote, "I have highlighted multiple times here how the street signage in Pune is really bad (compared to other Indian cities. Forget comparing with global standards). Inadequate signage, small size, poor fonts, no standardisation, etc."

"Some really good overhead signs were put up in 2008 across the city before the Commonwealth Youth Games (for example, near the University Intersection). However, nothing else has been done after that. And these excellent signs haven't been maintained at all, and they are finally giving way after 17+ years. Street signage for directions, traffic rules (and lane markings) is very important and PMC needs to focus on this," the post said.

Poor Visibility Adds to Confusion

While another user commented, "Yes, some have such small letters that it’s difficult to read from a distance, especially at night, to decide which route to take. Signages should be designed so that even someone on that road should be able to navigate. But no, they want us to do a depth-first search all the time."

Bijay Kumar, an ex-army personnel, said, "Overhead signage on major roads, such as Solapur Road, is obstructed by tree branches, making it difficult to see the details beneath the greenery. Clear signboards for each road and lane have been installed in selected neighbourhoods, including Koregaon Park and Deccan Gymkhana. However, those boards were installed as part of citizen efforts. Residents of these communities paid for their own signboards, and PMC later put up others. But it needed people to come together and voice their concerns to get the basics correct."

Key Routes Lack Proper Guidance

Residents also noted that Laxmi Road, Bund Garden Road, Shankar Sheth Road, and Mundhwa Road are important routes being used by thousands daily. The lack of signage boards in these areas creates trouble for commuters.

PMC Yet to Respond

Free Press Journal tried contacting Santosh Varule, Head of Pune Municipal Corporation's (PMC) Sky Sign and License Department, but he was unavailable for response.