×
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Bengaluru will get four more metro lines by November: D K Shivakumar

The city's metro network, which currently stands at 69.9 km, will rise by 26.14 km
Last Updated 07 June 2023, 21:48 IST

Bengaluru will get four more metro lines by November, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said after a maiden review of the Namma Metro project on Tuesday.

Shivakumar, who is also the Bengaluru development minister, visited the offices of Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) and brainstormed with senior officials about expediting metro work, ramping up non-fare revenue and opening new lines.

The 2.1-km Baiyappanahalli-KR Pura line, a missing link in the Chellaghatta-Whitefield Purple Line, will open in July. The 1.9-km Kengeri-Chellaghatta line will be ready in August or September. The 3-km Nagasandra-Madavara line, which has been under construction since 2017, will be available to the public in September or October. The 19.14-km RV Road-Bommasandra, which links Electronics City, will open in October or November, according to a statement from Shivakumar's office.

The crucial 58-km Silk Board-KR Pura-Airport line will be ready by June 2026, the statement added.

Last December, then-Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai told the legislature that the Bengaluru airport would be linked to the metro by "December 2023". His written reply, however, stipulated a June 2026 deadline.

While Shivakumar reiterated the airport metro deadline specified in Bommai's written reply, his timelines for other lines are different from those set by the previous government.

The erstwhile BJP government had set a March 2023 deadline for the Baiyappanahalli-Whitefield line, May 2023 for Kengeri-Chellaghatta, August 2023 for Nagasandra-Madavara and September 2023 for RV Road-Bommasandra.

The KR Pura-Whitefield line opened in March, leaving out the Baiayappanahalli-KR Pura link.

The different timelines expose the tardy pace of metro work in the city. The airport line was further delayed by a fatal accident in January.

Shivakumar acknowledged the slow work and said he would soon call a meeting with traffic police to facilitate the transport of cement and other materials to metro sites during the day. "Police and the public should cooperate," he stated.

He also dwelt on making Metro profitable, saying most of its earnings go to running operations. He suggested ways to increase non-fare revenue and promised to remove advertisement restrictions. He also suggested that the metro adopt the group captive model to lower its power bill.

Shivakumar said the metro's Phase 3 DPR had been sent to the union government, which asked for certain documents. "The documents have been submitted. I'll go to Delhi and discuss it with the minister concerned (to get approval)," he said.

Phase 3A will have a 43-km line from Hebbal to JP Nagar 4th Phase and a 12-km line from Hosahalli to Kadabagere. A survey is underway for Phase 3B (Sarjapur-Hebbal), he said. He also called for surveys on new lines.

A BMRCL official declined to comment, saying it was only a review meeting.

ADVERTISEMENT
(Published 06 June 2023, 21:43 IST)

Follow us on

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT