Tunnel road only option to address traffic problem, claims DKS

Bengaluru: Justifying the Bengaluru tunnel Road Project, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday told the Legislative Council that it was 'the only option' to address the traffic problem in the city.

Responding to a question by BJP member C T Ravi, Shivakumar said, "Road widening is impossible in Bengaluru. Nobody is ready for road widening. Flyovers and Metro have been done. We have done a traffic survey. There's no other option but a tunnel."

He further stated that the government cannot afford the prohibitive cost of land acquisition, paying double rates to the property owners.

"Most of the properties in Bengaluru have a value of more than Rs 10,000 per sqft," he mentioned. 

He said the deadline for participating in the tender is also likely to be postponed, as many have expressed interest in participating in the tender process.   

Shivakumar informed the House that the government has worked on it for almost one and a half years.

"The project will be on a 60:40 basis. The government is providing 40% of the cost, and the (participating) company will bring in 60% of the cost under viability gap funding. The company will be allowed to collect toll charges," he stated.

About the land acquisition cost, he said Rs 800 crore is needed for private land acquisition and most of the properties are government properties.

Responding to allegations of an inflated price for the project compared to the similar project executed in other states, he said, "The diameter of the tunnel road was double that of metro tunnels and cannot be compared. Some have criticised me. I want to make it clear, I am not looking at business or finance. I have come to Bengaluru with passion. I want to leave a legacy, and I am open to any investigation."

Claiming that Bengaluru Tunnel Road will be the biggest, Shivakumar said, "No need to compare this with tunnel roads in other cities.  If you compare it with other major tunnel projects, such as the Gaimukh tunnel, the Orange gate tunnel of Mumbai, our cost is much cheaper than those projects' costs. In both these tunnels, the per-kilometre cost is Rs 1,316 crore, while our tunnel road cost per kilometre is only Rs 770 crore per kilometre," he added. 

'My children criticise me for B'luru traffic'

During the debate, Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar said that he is getting questioned even by his children about the traffic issue. "While crossing Hebbal, even judges call us and blast for the traffic menace. Even at my home, my children criticise me for Bengaluru traffic," he said.