New flyover from Koramangala to Ejipura to cut travel time by 30 mins

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday laid the foundation stone for a 2.4-km-long flyover from Kendriya Sadan in Koramangala to Ejipura Main Road junction.

To be built at a cost of Rs 204 crore, the flyover will be a four-lane road. By constructing three main and four small junctions along the way, the signal-free corridor is expected to save about 30 minutes of travel time for motorists.

Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said Bengaluru had over 60 lakh vehicles and the construction of the flyover would help decongest roads.

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner N Manjunath Prasad said: “About 15,000 vehicles pass through this route every day and motorists will be able to save 30 minutes once the flyover opens. The flyover will have a cycle track along with a footpath.”

The flyover project, which received budgetary allocation in 2016-17, is expected to be completed by January 2019. “The work is expected to take 18 months,” Reddy said.

Mayor G Padmavathi said the flyover would be the longest free expressway in the city after Sirsi Circle flyover.

Besides laying the foundation stone for the signal-free corridor, the chief minister also initiated a number of development projects in BTM Layout Assembly constituency which is represented by Reddy. A total of Rs 625 crore has been allocated for these projects.

A park at Mestri Palya, Koramangala, will be built at a cost of Rs 7 crore. Around 950 houses will be built in Adugodi, Rajendra Nagar, MK Colony, Sudduguntepalya and Siddhartha Nagar for people living in slums. A grant of Rs 255.54 crore has been sanctioned for asphalting 300 kilometre of roads in prominent wards of the city.

Siddaramaiah, who also holds the Finance portfolio, said there was no financial discipline in budgetary allocations earlier. “But we have made the rules strict. We are able to carry out our work and perform better since the money is not going waste,” he said.

Madiwala has received special focus under the development projects in BTM Layout constituency. The works include construction of shops in Madiwala market at a cost of Rs 21 crore, development of lakes (Rs 25 crore), construction of a dialysis centre (Rs 2.5 crore), library (Rs 80 lakh) and cardiac surgery centre (Rs 1.8 crore).