Commuters cheat death everyday to access Baiyappanahalli Metro station

Nearly six years after the Baiyappanahalli Metro station became operational, commuters do not have safe access to the station from the other side of Swami Vivekananda Road, which has led to numerous accidents.

BMRCL operationalised Namma Metro’s Reach 1 between Baiyappanahalli and MG Road back in October 2011. The station has seen highest footfall compared to all others till the entire Phase 1 was inaugurated on June 17.

Today, Baiyappanahalli has an daily average footfall of 7.14 lakh, second only to Kempegowda interchange station that records 8.8 lakh footfalls everyday. However, most of those who choose to ride the Metro are putting themselves at risk while accessing both these stations.

At Baiyappanahalli, BMRCL has provided an entrance on both sides of the Baiyappanahalli station. However, those coming from KR Puram have to struggle to enter the station. The most vulnerable among these are pedestrians who end up becoming victims of minor accidents almost every day.

Over the past 24 hours, two persons were hit by vehicles while crossing the busy Old Madras Road.

A youth was seriously injured while crossing the road to reach the Metro station at 11 pm on Monday. The 70-year-old biker also suffered grievous injuries when he tried to avoid hitting the youth. “With the last train being at 11.05 pm, the youth was in a hurry to reach the Metro station,” an eyewitness said.

On Tuesday, a 40-year-old person was badly injured in his leg when a speeding bike hit him while he was crossing the road at about 12.30 pm.

Both the accidents would not have come to light had it not been for eyewitnesses. Police do not keep count of such incidents if a case is not registered.

Traffic police opined that a subway or foot-overbridge should be built opposite the Metro station. “The Srinivasapura bus stop should be shifted to ensure that people who get off buses can access the Metro through the subway or the bridge,” they added.

When contacted, BBMP officials said an in-principle approval has been given to a proposal to build afoot-overbridge. Technical specifications are being finalised by UVCE officials. The final approval will be given after studying the specifics,” he said.

When questioned about the delay in the project, the official said land acquisition and project approval were the main hurdles.

“The skywalk is now proposed to come up next to the security guard room near the entrance of the Metro station’s parking lot,” he added.