JOIN USNow, BDA plans Rs 225-cr flyover to ease Hebbal gridlock
About two years after the work on Hebbal flyover was stopped following objections by the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), the BDA has tweaked the design to renew the push for the project at a cost of Rs 225 crore.
The project aims to end traffic woes of commuters travelling to the city from the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA). Vehicles heading from KIA towards the city face a series of bottlenecks on the existing two-lane flyover. The congestion is caused by the merger of traffic from the Tumkur Road and KR Puram through the loops that connect the narrow flyover.
The BDA has invited tender, with September 9 as the last date for receiving bids.
As per the new plan, both the loops will be dismantled. A new flyover will be built from the upramp at Esteem Mall to Baptist Hospital. A new loop with a cross-connection will merge vehicles from both Tumkur Road (west) and KR Puram (east).
“The flyover will begin as a two-lane carriageway at the upramp near the mall and widen into a three-lane carriage at the point where the merger happens,” BDA chief engineer E M Shantharajanna told DH.
“The existing two-lane flyover will be completely free. Together with the new flyover, we will have five lanes,” he said.
Another flyover with two more lanes to the existing Hebbal-KIA flyover will be taken up at a later stage after completing the work in the opposite direction, officials said.
Vehicles from Tumkur Road can continue on the Outer Ring Road towards KR Puram through an underpass, a proposal which will come as a relief to thousands of commuters.
Coordination with metro
Earlier this year, the BMRCL published a report prepared by RITES which recommended an integrated project to facilitate seamless connectivity between different modes of transport.
Asked about the recommendation, BDA Commissioner M B Rajesh Gowda said they have incorporated the salient features of the report before going ahead with the project. “We have held talks with the BMRCL. Details of the project were finalised after discussions with the metro officials,” he said.
The RITES had designed the project as a solution to the traffic scenario of 2051. However, BDA officials said implementing the project would have meant the acquisition of large tracts of land. “We want to keep land acquisition to the minimum and come up with a solution. Moreover, with metro and suburban rail and Peripheral Ring Road, we believe the pressure on Hebbal junction will come down,” Shantharajanna said.