The signals
Filed, numbered and, in every case, unresolved.
Funny civic complaints from India and beyond
- HM-RE018
London closed Hammersmith Bridge to cars in 2019. It now says it may never reopen.
Fixing it would cost £300 million. Not fixing it has so far cost £54 million.
London, United Kingdom, Infrastructure, 7 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE019
New York now has a whole mayoral office for rats
Not to catch them. To coordinate the people who might.
New York, United States, Governance, 7 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE020
Toronto opened a 19 km tram line. It took 15 years.
That is just over a kilometre a year, which is also roughly how it feels at red lights.
Toronto, Canada, Infrastructure, 7 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE021
Rome's buses catch fire so often that Romans named it
The word is Flambus. Nobody had to explain it.
Rome, Italy, Infrastructure, 7 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE022
An English town built a £50 million bridge, then ran out of money for the road
The bridge is finished. The road is expected in 2030, or whenever someone finds £33 million.
Spalding, United Kingdom, Infrastructure, 7 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE023
A Vietnamese province built a $600,000 bridge with no road at either end
The bridge is ready. The soil isn't approved.
Nghe An, Vietnam, Infrastructure, 7 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE011
Half an hour of rain turned Hinjewadi's IT park into a water park
An MLA suggested boats. At last, a Hinjewadi commute with a view.
Hinjewadi, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE012
Hinjewadi flooded. The next question was whose flood it was.
We have raised a ticket. It has been assigned to the concerned department, which has asked which one that is.
Hinjewadi, India, Governance, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE013
The Hinjewadi metro was ready. It just needed someone to say so.
The commuters waited for the metro, in traffic, underneath the metro.
Hinjewadi, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE014
The Hinjewadi metro went through more deadlines than a software release
Ship phase one. Call the rest a roadmap. Hinjewadi knows this process.
Hinjewadi, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE015
Chakan's factory roads are 70 metres wide, until you try to reach them
Workers lose about four hours a day, which is a generous contribution to the national road experience.
Chakan, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE016
Chakan's potholes now have a 14-department committee
A pothole, in our experience, is a hole. This one has a reporting structure.
Chakan, India, Governance, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE017
Chakan's road repair returned the road to its original ingredients
Crushed stone and sand, served loose. Punctures included at no extra charge.
Chakan, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE001
Bhopal built an ₹18 crore bridge with a 90-degree turn in it
Not a bend. A corner, of the kind usually found in a room.
Bhopal, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE002
A freshly repaired road in Pune started keeping people's chappals
Most roads let you leave. This one wanted a souvenir.
Pune, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE003
Pune's new flyover will be cut in 66 places, and this is apparently the plan
Nothing has gone wrong. The flyover was simply born with 66 appointments.
Pune, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE004
Two bridges in Mumbai were supposed to meet. They missed by nearly two metres.
Problems in Mumbai usually get raised, and that's the end of it. This one was raised 1,397 millimetres.
Mumbai, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE005
Mumbai's Aqua Line lived up to its name within 16 days
In fairness, rain in Mumbai is a rare event, occurring only every year.
Mumbai, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE006
Delhi tried to make rain on a day with hardly any moisture in the clouds
"One measure of success is if it rains, which certainly did not happen." We admire the clarity.
New Delhi, India, Environment, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE007
New Delhi's air monitor got a good wash. Why depends on whom you ask.
We don't know anyone's intentions. We would just like to stand wherever the water is.
New Delhi, India, Environment, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE008
A ₹98 crore road in Bihar kept its trees, in the lanes
The trees got reflective strips, which is more safety equipment than most of us were issued.
Jehanabad, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE009
Bihar issued a residence certificate to Dog Babu, child of Kutta Babu
Many Indians have spent weeks trying to prove where they live. Dog Babu has the paperwork.
Masaurhi, India, Governance, 6 November 2026
Reported - HM-RE010
A woman in Bengaluru got tired of a pothole and filled it herself
We understand she has not yet been sent a tender, an inauguration date or a ribbon.
Bengaluru, India, Infrastructure, 6 November 2026
Reported
Nothing filed here yet.
Either this place has no problems, or nobody has told us. One of these is more likely.