Coronavirus scare: Normal life suspended as shutdown kicks in Bengaluru

Fewer traffic jams are a boon but retailers and restaurants are reeling from big losses

In the city with the worst traffic in the world, Covid-19 has wrought a miracle — no traffic jams. As malls, offices, schools, and colleges remain shut, the traffic in Bengaluru has fallen by 40-45 per cent. The shops on the normally bustling Brigade Road have been open but with no customer in sight. The line of autorickshaw drivers, who used to park at MG Road, adjacent to Brigade Road, has gone awol.  

Church Street, thronged by visitors throughout the day because of its hundreds of cafes and restaurants, was eerily empty. None of the popular eateries — Oye Amritsar,