No end in sight for gridlock as metro, BWSSB work stalls opening of service road in Nagawara

Bengaluru: A portion of the service road on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) between Nagawara and Veerannapalya remains closed, choking traffic for several kilometres.

Despite the stretch being a key corridor to the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), Namma Metro, Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) and Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) are showing no urgency to complete the work.

Earlier this week, vehicles began slowing down from Hennur Road junction and came to a halt atop the flyover in front of Manyata Tech Park, with the jam stretching all the way to Kempapura, just before Hebbal. Regular commuters say the situation has persisted for a very long time.

Namma Metro has blocked the service road in front of the sewage treatment plant (STP) in Hebbal, while the BWSSB has partly blocked the service road below Nagawara for laying water pipelines.

Workers on the site told DH that one side of the service road should be ready for public use within a month, but Namma Metro officials were not available for comment.

The improvement of the service road from Kasturinagar to Kempapura is part of the GBA's high-density corridor improvement project. Progress has been slow. An engineer in charge of the project said the delay is due to works taken up by multiple agencies on the same stretch.

Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, who is also the MLA of Byatarayanapura assembly constituency, recently inspected the site and expressed frustration over the delay in Metro works, particularly the continued blockage of service roads.

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar also visited the spot. Metro officials have since begun levelling the road to lay asphalt, but the work is far from complete.

During a drive along the stretch, large volumes of garbage were visible on the edges of the underpass at Hennur, which is also covered with half a lane of silt and broken slabs. Similar garbage piles were seen all the way till Babusapalya, raising questions about the quality of the regular cleanliness drive conducted by the Bengaluru North City Corporation.