Bengaluru Cantonment to be suburban rail terminal

The project to transform Cantonment Railway Station into a terminal for suburban trains has received the approval of the Railway Board with the South Western Railway (SWR) now gearing up to draw up detailed plans for the project.

Officials from SWR’s Bengaluru Division proposed the plan in November 2017 to develop Cantonment on the model of Churchgate Railway Station in Mumbai at an estimated cost of Rs 38 crore.

SWR chief administration officer K C Swami confirmed that the approval came last month. “A detailed project report has to be prepared to plan for the kind of facilities needed for passengers. Tenders will be called after detailed planning,” he said.

Asked about the time frame, he said the project itself can be executed in a year. “However, we have to plan the required infrastructure facilities to set up a terminal station following which estimates will be drawn up,” he added.

According to the plan, four platforms will be built along the southern boundary, making it a terminal for trains running to Whitefield, Hosur, Bangarpet and Marikuppam.

“The Cantonment project is a low-hanging fruit that aims to utilise the existing resources and build four platforms. It has the potential to serve lakhs of people, considering that most of the immediate demand for suburban rail is to connect East Bengaluru,” a senior railway official said.
Officials noted that the proposed platforms will be dedicated for local trains. “With four platforms, at least 10 trains can be introduced on the route. We do not need to wait for quadrupling of the Cantonment-Whitefield line,” he said.

Subway, travellator to connect Metro

BMRCL has made accessibility part of the main project and included a subway in its tender for the Shivajinagar to Tannery Road section. A 275-metre-long subway will connect the upcoming Metro station with the proposed terminal station.

At the proposed terminal station, the subway — equipped with a travellator — will provide accessibility to the four platforms. The railways have also proposed a travellator that runs across a platform, allowing passengers to reach from one end of the platform to another without hassles.