'Silk Board-Hebbal stretch most congested'

 Traffic management between Hebbal and the Central Silk Board (CSB) on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) leaves a lot to be desired.

Absence of proper service roads on the ORR means vehicle speed here is not more than 10 kmph, according to a study conducted by the Consortia of Infrastructure Engineers (CIE).

Conducted by CIE members, Vidya Rani P, Bharathi B, Ashwini V and M N Sreehari, the study assumes significance following another accident on the Esteem Mall junction on Ballari Road on Wednesday. Two bikers were injured when a lorry hit three cars, an auto-rickshaw and three motorcycles.

The study mentions a number of problems on the ORR, especially between Hebbal and the CSB, and probable solutions to them. It will be submitted to the State government by the end of this month.

As per the study, traffic between Hebbal and the CSB moves at an average speed of just 10 kmph. But from Marathahalli to KR Puram and KR Puram to Hebbal, the speed is even lower: 4.4 kmph. The slow traffic is because of the increased traffic load, absence of proper service roads and the fact that more than 70 per cent of large-scale construction activities take place between Hebbal and the CSB.

Further, traffic junctions are formed by unequal road geometry where the cross roads and signals do not help in traffic co-ordination. Then, the service road between Nagawara Junction and Hebbal is not fully constructed and cannot be used by motorists.

The study also shows the modal split of traffic between Hebbal and the CSB. It reveals that at some prime locations, especially near commercial spaces like Manyata Tech Park, Eco-Space, Intel, Cisco, Prestige tech park and near KR Puram, 40-50 per cent traffic is four wheelers, 25-32 per cent buses and trucks and the remaining two- and three-wheelers.

Slow-moving vehicles and those carrying goods and construction material should be diverted to service roads. This way, the main carriageway can be utilised by cars and two-wheelers so that the speed can be maintained at 40-50 kmph.

The study states that the government’s proposal to implement the Bus Rapid Transit System between Agara, Iblur and Marathahalli is not feasible as the carriageways are not good. That will add to the existing traffic problems and reduce the number of lanes, said traffic expert M N Sreehari.