23 CBD roads to be spruced up under TenderSURE scheme

Soon, the Palike will rebuild 23 roads in the Central Business District under the TenderSURE programme.

The civic body has prepared a Detailed Project Report (DPR) and is ready to float the tenders. Officials revealed that the project would be carried out at a cost of Rs 250 crore under the chief minister's Nagarothana Project.

In all, the civic body would spruce up 23.76 kilometres of road and will develop the 23 roads under six blocks. Officials assure that the work would begin in two months, once the tender process is completed.

While ensuring the comfort and safety of pedestrians and cyclists, TenderSURE designs also include the requirements of street vendors and hawkers. It combines street landscape and hardscape aesthetics with certain practical considerations like user behavioural changes.

TenderSURE projects also integrate different services under the road such as water, power, sewage, optical fiber cables, stormwater drains and gas. TenderSURE projects have been successfully implemented in seven CBD areas — Vittal Mallya Hospital Road, Cunningham Road, Residency Road, St Mark’s Road, Museum Road, Commissariat Road and Richmond Road.

The 750-metre Church Street, revamped under the TenderSURE programme and thrown open to the public in March, had some additional features added to its landscape. Granite cobblestone with new motif, uniform roadway and pedestrian walkway have been added to the road, which the government revamped at a cost of Rs 9 crore.

Three more TenderSURE roads

Encouraged by the public response, the BBMP is now considering redoing Brigade Road, Museum Road and Commercial Street.

Paper in Aussie journal

Recently, a paper on TenderSURE was published in an Australian journal, dedicated to transport and vehicle engineering. The paper was authored by researchers and BBMP officials.

Titled 'Improvement to Pedestrian Walkway Facilities to Enhance Pedestrian Safety-Initiatives in India', the paper was authored by Reshma P S, assistant professor at Global Academy of Technology; A Veeraragavan from the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras; Swathi Ramanathan, chairperson of Jana Urban Space Foundation; and BBMP officials K T Nagaraj and Basavaraj Kabade.