Jalahalli rail overbridge finally opens, relief for motorists

The much-awaited railway overbridge (RoB) on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) near Jalahalli was thrown open to traffic on Friday by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

This will bring relief to motorists travelling on the stretch and at the Goraguntepalya junction.

Before the construction of the ROB, motorists from Goruguntepalya junction going towards Jalahalli, BEL Circle, Hebbal and Krishnarajapuram had to wait for at least 15 minutes at the level crossing near Jalahalli.

Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) and South Western Railway have jointly financed the Rs 40-crore project. The RoB was opened to traffic on an experimental basis for the last 10 days.

The BDA began work on the project four years ago to ease traffic woes. “A portion of defence land was needed for the construction of the RoB. However, defence authorities refused to hand over the land and thus the project was delayed,” a BDA official said. 

Abhinav Suresh, a student from Yeshwantpur National Public School, last year, had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about how he was reaching school late due to the incomplete RoB work.

Suresh, in the letter, stated that it took him 45 minutes to cover a stretch of three km. Modi, on receiving the letter, directed defence authorities to hand over the required land, after which, the project moved at a fast pace.