Land exchange between Palike, Railways almost through

This will help expand city station, construct signal-free corridor

The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has handed over three acres and 16 guntas near Binny Mills to the Railways, to facilitate expansion of the City Railway Station. 

More platforms will be constructed at the station, besides creating space for the commuter rail project, which is in its infancy. In turn, the Railways is finalising the handover of 3.5 acres of its land to the Palike for the signal-free eight-lane corridor project near Okalipuram (connecting Rajajinagar and Anand Rao Circle). 

The corridor project was planned three years ago when the BJP was in power in the State. Hurdles in land acquisition caused delay in the implementation of the project.

The Binny Mills land has been acquired by the BBMP at a cost of Rs 70.13 crore on behalf of the Railways. A few days ago, a letter is learnt to have been issued from the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Bangalore Urban to the Indian Railways to take possession of the land, BBMP sources said.

Once the exchange of land happens, construction of the Okalipuram eight-lane corridor at a cost of Rs 115 crore will be started, to ease traffic congestion at one of the worst traffic bottlenecks in the City.

According to a survey conducted by the BBMP, the hourly traffic density at the junction ranges between 925 passenger car units per hour (PCUPH) to 13,989 PCUPH.

The one-km-long corridor will have two sets of loops located between the two road underbridges and in front of the proposed new entrance to the railway building. It will have a two-lane uni-directional underpass for traffic movement from Malleswaram to Rajajinagar. There will also be two pedestrian subways near Okalipuram and the church and a foot overbridge in front of the proposed railway facilities. 

The project proposes the remodelling of the railway underbridge near Okalipuram and Fountain Circle.