At majestic, two metro stations fail to connect to railway station

The much-delayed construction of a pedestrian bridge to provide access to the City Railway Metro station at platform number 10 of Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna (KSR) railway station may take three more months for completion.

Namma Metro's Byappanahalli-Mysore Road line has two Metro stations, each connecting the railway station from two directions. Though the stretch was opened for public in November 2015, commuters of railways, BMTC and KSRTC are yet to get safe access.

Those exiting the railway station from the western point at platform number 10, have to climb down a row of stairs to the road and walk for nearly 200 metres to reach the City Railway Metro station.

"We are waiting to see when they will complete the construction. I have asked railway officials many times but they point fingers at the Metro. The stretch is very unfriendly to pedestrians in the evenings as the street is poorly lit," said Srujan Reddy.

Reddy, who travels between Kengeri and Jayanagar, said he avoids the Kempegowda Metro Station "as it requires walking nearly a kilometre from the platform".

"If the government wants to decongest city, it should prioritise integration to help people who travel from suburbs every day for work," he said.

Work on the pedestrian bridge connecting the Metro station to platform 10 is still ongoing. The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has set February as the target for completion of the work.

"The BMRCL portion (of the bridge) will be ready by February end. The portion built by the railways may take three months," the corporation's Public Relations Officer U A Vasanth Rao said.

Once completed, the bridge will have an escalator and a lift at the Metro station. It will connect the railway foot-over bridge where passengers can access all platforms.

The project has missed three deadlines in 2017 with the cost nearly doubling from the original Rs 95 lakh to nearly Rs 2 crore. "The railways has given clearance for the project. It is left to the BMRCL to complete the work," a senior official in SWR's Bengaluru division said.