Metro estate

With the Bangalore Metro coming to life, realty sector is witnessing a lot of development, writes Ruth Dsouza Prabhu.

It’s been a part of our lives now since 2007. We have endured road blocks, watched towering scaffolding go up, magnificent overhead tracks getting laid and the first 6.5 km stretch of Namma Metro inaugurated in 2011. Reach 1, extending from M G Road to Byappanahalli, was the only functional part of the Metro till March 1 of this year. This was the day Reach 3 and 3A of the Metro line were inaugurated. With the opening of this line, there are several ripples across a number of sectors in Bangalore, real estate being the foremost. 

Metro effect

But before we go into that, let us take a look at how the M G Road to Byappanahalli stretch of the Metro fared, considering it had a head start in terms of functioning. “As an infrastructural addition to Bangalore’s landscape, it worked to decongest most parts of M G Road, Ulsoor and Indiranagar,” says C N Govindraju, President, CREDAI-Bangalore. 

He explains saying real estate prices along the stretch began to skyrocket. Residential pricing in and around Old Madras Road went up by 25 per cent to 30 per cent. Commercial real estate received a huge boost with the increase of FAR from 3.2 to 4. This opened up opportunities for development as well as for the increase in investments and revenue. In fact, C N Govindraju lets us in on a little-known fact — the resale value of homes around Metro Reach 1 also changed dramatically. 

Metro Reach 3 and 3A extends over a distance of 10 km and 10 stations between Sampige Road and Peenya Industrial Area. Reach 3 and 3A form a part of the ‘green line’ of Metro and connects the north-western suburb of Peenya to Sampige Road in Malleshwaram. Right now, only four of the 10 stations are actively open. 

The 2.5 km stretch from Peenya to Nagasandra and the 4 km underground tunneling from Sampige Road to National College are slated for completion by October. At the station after Sampige Road, the green and purple lines of Metro will intersect.

What’s in store?

Once this happens, real estate across the entire stretch will see a massive boost and investments along the Metro line will increase. Besides schools and hospitals in the area, a number of retail malls will come up in this sector. Those already present are seeing an increase in footfalls on an everyday basis. 

“With the Metro now functioning and stopping right outside the Brigade Gateway campus, people who reside in slightly far off areas from the mall will now be able to experience our offerings with greater frequency. We hope that the rest of the routes planned on the Metro are operational sooner so that the entire city is more efficiently connected and provide more ease of access to outstanding developments,” says Vishal Mirchandani, CEO Commercial and Retail, Brigade Group.

One of the primary benefits of Metro is reduced travelling time and easy coverage of distance. For the hospitality industry too this bodes well in the long term, since the spaces are more accessible to a larger number of people.
 Saurabh Bakshi, General Manager, Sheraton Bangalore says, “The hotel is located in the self-sustained lifestyle enclave and guests can shop at the mall, dine at the hotel, spend some time at the spa and refresh themselves before the start of a new week.” “Metro provides improved infrastructure and the benefit of connectivity. It cuts on the travel time and thus makes this part of the city more approachable. It allows us to make the most of the opportunity to attract the local populace as well, by creating weekend stay offers, spa packages, and dining options.”

Though there is a lot more that needs to go into the completion of Metro Reach 3 and 3A, the impact on related sectors is already visible. This infrastructural development will have a positive impact on all that is associated with it, but the exact quantification of these benefits will only be known once the entire line is functional.