Jerome Anand's One-Wheel Office Run: How A Bengaluru Man, A Traffic Cop, And An Electric Unicycle Made The Whole Internet Smile

Some commutes change your day. Jerome Anand's commute changed the internet's day. The Bengaluru-based professional, who rides a self-balancing electric unicycle (EUC) 25 km to and from his office every day, posted a video on Instagram documenting the moment a traffic police officer flagged him down not to fine him, but to ask what on earth he was riding. What followed was one of the most wholesome traffic stop videos India has produced in years: the officer tried the unicycle himself, couldn't stop grinning, and let Jerome carry on with a smile. The clip went massively viral, and by May 10, 2026, the story had been picked up by Hindustan Times, NDTV, and dozens of other publications.

Jerome Anand — The Man Behind The Wheel

Jerome Anand is a Bengaluru-based commuter and electric unicycle enthusiast who documents his rides and experiences under the Instagram handle @jro_thestreetrider. He has been riding his EUC as a daily commuter vehicle covering a full 25 km each way and has built a small but engaged following among India's nascent micro-mobility community. His decision to share the traffic cop encounter was spontaneous: he pulled out his phone, captured the interaction, and posted it without expecting it to travel far. It travelled very, very far. His Instagram post shows Jerome in full riding gear helmet, protective padding presenting the device to a genuinely fascinated police officer on what appears to be a busy Bengaluru arterial road during peak hours.

He Asked To Try It

This is the detail that elevated the story from "interesting" to "irresistible." The traffic officer responding to Jerome's patient explanation of how the device works, how it balances, and how fast it goes asked if he could try it. Jerome obliged. The officer mounted the EUC, wobbled, laughed, wobbled again, and dismounted with the look of someone who has just briefly touched the future. "He asked to try it," Jerome wrote in his Instagram caption, a line simple enough to become the story's headline and warm enough to capture precisely what made the moment worth sharing. There was no challan. There was no official communication. There was only a human being encountering something genuinely new and responding with curiosity rather than suspicion which, in 2026's increasingly tense urban environment, felt like a small miracle.

The Machine Jerome Rides

Jerome's electric unicycle belongs to the high-performance category of personal electric vehicles self-balancing devices built around a single motorised wheel, controlled entirely through body weight shifts. These devices use gyroscopes and accelerometers to maintain upright balance: leaning forward accelerates, leaning back brakes, and lateral weight shifts steer. There is no handlebar, no throttle, and no seat on standard EUC models. Performance specifications for his category of device typically include:

• Top speed of 40–60 kmph
• Range of 60–100 km per charge
• Motor output of 1,500–3,000W
• Charging time of 3–6 hours
• Device weight of 18–25 kg light enough to carry onto metro platforms or into offices

For Jerome's 25 km commute, the EUC's narrow single-body profile allows him to filter through Bengaluru's gridlock with a freedom that cars, bikes, and even cycles cannot match on congested stretches.

The Legal Vacuum Jerome Is Riding Through

Here is the uncomfortable truth the viral joy of Jerome's video sits on top of: India has no regulatory framework for high-performance electric unicycles. Under the Central Motor Vehicles Rules (CMVR), electric cycles with motors up to 250W and a top speed under 25 kmph are exempt from registration, insurance, and licensing requirements. Jerome's EUC capable of 40–60 kmph with a motor exceeding 1,000W clearly falls outside this exemption. Yet it is also not classified as a motorcycle, moped, or any registered vehicle category under the Motor Vehicles Act. The result is a legal grey zone in which:

• No registration requirement applies
• No mandatory third-party insurance framework covers the device
• No specific helmet or protective gear law governs EUC riders
• Police have no clear provision under which to either permit or penalise the vehicle

No challan category exists for high-performance personal electric micro-mobility devices

The traffic officer who stopped Jerome had no legal basis to fine him which is precisely why he defaulted to the more human response of asking questions. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has progressively updated EV policy since 2019 but has yet to address EUCs, electric skateboards, or one-wheels in any formal regulatory instrument.

Bengaluru's Traffic Crisis And The One-Wheel Solution

Bengaluru ranked among the world's most congested cities in the TomTom Traffic Index 2025, with commuters losing an estimated 243 hours annually over 10 full days to traffic delays. Jerome's 25 km commute, which by car could take anywhere from 90 minutes to two hours in peak traffic, is completed on the EUC in a fraction of that time the device filters lanes, navigates gaps, and operates at speeds that match or exceed urban traffic flow on most stretches. Operating cost is approximately Rs 3–5 per 10 km in electricity, making it among the cheapest commuting options available in any Indian city. Jerome's story has generated dozens of follow-up posts on Reddit r/Bengaluru asking where to buy EUCs, what the learning curve involves, and whether group rides are organised a clear signal that the demand for micro-mobility solutions in Bengaluru is well ahead of the policy frameworks designed to manage them.

One-Wheel Commuter Insights

• Jerome Anand (@jro_thestreetrider on Instagram) is the Bengaluru commuter who rides an electric unicycle 25 km daily to and from his office
• A traffic police officer stopped Jerome mid-commute out of curiosity asked how it works, how fast it goes, and then asked to try it himself
• The officer mounted the EUC, wobbled and laughed, dismounted smiling  no fine was issued; Jerome rode on with a heartwarming thumbs-up
• Jerome shared the interaction on Instagram, where it went massively viral, leading to coverage by Hindustan Times, NDTV, and multiple national outlets
• His EUC operates at 40–60 kmph with 60–100 km range, costs Rs 3–5 per 10 km to charge, and filters through gridlock that stops every conventional vehicle
• High-performance EUCs fall into India's regulatory no-man's-land  not exempt like sub-250W e-cycles, but also not classified as motorcycles or any registered vehicle category
• No registration, insurance mandate, helmet law, or challan provision currently exists for EUCs under MoRTH rules or the Motor Vehicles Act as of May 2026
• Bengaluru commuters lose 243 hours annually to traffic (TomTom 2025) Jerome's one-wheel solution cuts that commute time dramatically while producing zero tailpipe emissions

Sources: Hindustan Times (May 10, 2026)