The recent state budget has funding for projects including five signal-free corridors (Rs 426 crore), upgradation of 45 roads (Rs 200 crore) and Metro Corridor Reach-1 from Bypanahalli to Kumble Circle (Rs 65 crore). The first two are to be funded by the state government and the latter to be funded equally by BBMP & BMRCL. DPRs (Detailed Project Reports) are getting ready. I hope the tendering process gets underway in June/July.
A BBMP underpass in JP Nagar. File pic: Yograj Mudalgi
Pilots for each of these projects is to be ready soon for the public to suggest improvements –
1. Signal free corridor pilot on Old Airport Road from Manipal Hospital to Domlur
2. Metro corridor pilot along and around Indiranagar station
3. Road upgrade pilot at War Memorial -junction of Brigade Road and Residency Road. This is based on Tender SURE, a specification for planning and design for roads developed by Bangalore City Connect Foundation.
These models should be ready by August end.
The signal free corridors are long stretches of arterial roads. It starts from Whitefield and goes to Vellara Jn via Marathahalli, HAL and Domlur. This work will include removing signals using underpasses at junctions Kundalahalli, HAL and Wind Tunnel Road. Apart from that, signal removal roads will be provided with proper footpath, median, street lights, bus bays, utility ducts, bus shelters & other amenities as you would see in other international cities.
The pilot from Manipal to Domlur will showcase road improvements as underpasses take time to complete. At the War memorial junction, the road will be made user friendly for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. A good example is Vittal Mallya Road, which was recently upgraded by private parties.
We are trying to showcase small pilot stretches to get feedback from designers, test the materials and give some idea of the project to Bangaloreans. I would also like to mention that as this is not a roadwidening project, there will be no tree cutting.
ha! so people staying on the stretch of murugeshpalya will be disconnected from the rest of the world :d
egl road work is going on for 3 years with no end in sight. this underpass will take atleast 3-4 years maybe?
[I had posted this comment earlier, but it seems to have gone missing]
Let me paraphrase what I had posted in Facebook:
If you notice, the model to the public is to ONLY ask for improvements. Not to question whether the project itself is needed in the first place.
And to a user’s question (on Facebook) on how many trees will be felled for these projects, this is Mr. Misra’s response:
>> This is not ROAD Widening so no Tree cutting.
Either they think the public (at least the internet-savvy, Facebook-using) is really dumb in buying this vaguest of response. We have seen that all flyover/underpass construction projects have resulted in lots of tree-felling [Please go see the loss due to removal of signal at Tagore Circle].
Or this is a very calculated and cunning way of distancing themselves from ROAD WIDENING (which everyone knows is associated with tree-felling) and just packaging it as SIGNAL-FREE (which people can be confused to believing that it doesn’t result in tree loss).
Of course, the biggest elephant in the room is this – signal-free corridors are criminal in intent. It’s painful to keep raising the same issue, but considering the educated elite like the author of this post don’t realise it, one is forced to keep hammering away – roads are for people mobility and livelihood, not vehicular mobility. A road with a flyover/underpass is dangerous for pedestrians. A person will not be able to cross the road to get to a bus stop. The physically challenged and the senior citizens might as well sit at home; the city is blatantly alienating them out through these projects.
Of course, if you have a car, you are fully welcome to rip on these roads, completely uninterrupted. All that these corridors help is in encouraging more private transport (like we don’t have enough of that already?) and sucking the lives of out of public spaces.
ultimately entire city is getting ready for motorists, autos, two wheelers and buses but not for living. we need to study the pattern of flow of traffic by time slot, divert the traffic, if necessary levy toll for using short cuts by them rather than spending huge tax payers money for fly over and under pass, which benefit mostly the corporators, contractors and BBMP officials-a well known fact.
Re: Traffic congestion at “Inner Ring Road” between Domlur Flyover to Koramangala
Dust Pollution due to demolition, Noise Pollution due to vehicular traffic etc.
Of late the traffic congestion/vehicles clogging has become order of the day during peak hours on INNER RING ROAD between Domlur –Airport Road Flyover to Koramangala (upto Oasis Centre/Tacho Bell/Sony world). The length of this Inner Ring Road stretch from Domlur Flyover to The Koramangala Inner Ring Road is approx. 4.0 kms on each side and 8.0 kms on round about. The average time required to get from one end of the road to the other end on this stretch during peak hour is about 30 to 45 minutes as against 5 to 10 minutes. This stretch of Inner Ring road connects vital extensions like Indiranagar, Old Madras Road, Kasturi Nagar, Kalyan Nagar, Koramangala, Madiwala, BTM Layout, Hosur Road, Bannerghatta Road, Jayanagar, Wilson Garden, Ulsoor, Kodihalli, Marathahhali and surving as direct link to International Airport in bound and outbound commuters. On an average the traffic flow on this INNER RING ROAD stretch of 4.00 + 4 kms exceeds 10,000 vehicles per hour during peak hours and 5,000 vehicles during non- peak hours. However, the stretch is contributing 24 hours of traffic volume without break with ever increasing day by day.
Thanks to the Traffic Management team and Police personnel posted on this stretch to ease the congestion during peak hours. But, the result has not brought enough relief to commuters satisfaction. The long wait and choking traffic has made residents of Domlur layout, ISRO Residents, Natasha Golf View residents, Amarjyothi Layout residents, on both stretch of this road to has exposed to unbearable noise pollution and air pollution causing health hazards to occupants. Hours together -choking traffic and round about travel on this stretch of inner ring road is making vehicle owners draining precious fuel (petrol and diesel) to an alarming measures and wastage of our precious foreign exchange to the nation.
If one can analyse the reason for this choking traffic on this stretch of inner ring road, it is evident that the stretch of this inner ring road is not properly managed for traffic flow with intermittent diversions at appropriate places as required from time to time since its inception.
This stretch of Inner Ring Road came into existence during 2004 and 2005 to ease the traffic choking on old airport road between ASC centre to Domlur and Indiranagar 100ft Road. However, there were no residential or commercial activities built up on this stretch of inner ring road until 2009. Thereafter with emergence of Maruthi Infotech Park, Challaghatta Infotech Park and Embassy Infotech Park with 100 to 200 units of commercial office spaces of IT and BT activities, commercial office spaces, hotels, residential houses on Amarjyothi Layout, diamond District and Multistoried residential apartments on this inner ring road boomed to hectic vehicular traffic of inflow and out flow within the layout. Added to this, the shifting of domestic HAL airport to International Airport this stretch of road has become a nodal and focal route to commuters all over the Bangalore to pass through this stretch of Inner Ring Road 24 hours a day.
At present this stretch of DOMLUR – KORAMANGALA INNER RING ROAD of 4 KMS of both roads has only one OPENING with U TURN after Embassy Tech Park for residents of this locality as well as floating traffic causing choking point at U TURN point on both stretch of the road. As a result of this more than 2000 vehicular traffic that congregates from flyover, 100 ft ring road, koramangala, ejipura, sarjapura intends to get inside the CHALLAGHATTA, MARUTI TECHNO PARK AND EMBASSY TECH PARK hovering around this inner ring road to and fro or round about motion to get into their respective business centre. As a result, the ongoing traffic flow on this stretch of road gets into bottle neck causing hours to-gether traffic jam.
In order to bring choking traffic level on this stretch of Inner Ring road, the following suggestions may please be “tried and tested” if not result oriented, reverse back to square number one situation.
1. ERECTION OF TRAFFIC SIGNAL LIGHT POSTS OR
CUTTING OF ROAD MEDIAN AT TWO OR THREE STRETCHES NEAR
a) Maruti Infotech Centre (DELL) or EMBASSY TECH PARK
b) HERO HONDA SHOWROOM/TVS TRISTAR
c) Provide U turn facility near Hero Honda showroom for traffic
Flow from domlur to koramangala –
This will help residents of ISRO, NATASHA GOLF VIEW, Amarjyothi Layout
Challagahatta residents and other business center occupants go towards
Domlur or Indiranagar and airport road instead of round about route.
d) Provide RIGHT TURN and U turn facility near Embassy Tech Park
This will help intended vehicular traffic (around 1000 per hour) approaching from Koramangala /Ejipura road would compulsorily take right or u turn for their respective business centres instead of making round about below the flyover road.
e) At present if one has to take U TURN from entrance of Tacho Bell/Koramangal Signal point road stretch the U Turn at Ejipura is not permitted as well as at Cutting Point on inner Ring road, One has to travel upto 3.5 kms on this stretch – go upto domlur flyover and come back towards opposite side of the road – does this has any meaning ????? Providing U turn and Right Turn at (a) and (b) points will ease this problem.
f) Provide ‘SPEED BREAKERS’ near ISRO RESIDENT GATE 1 on onward road from Domlur flyover to Koramangala and near ADARSH REGENT – so that vehicles speeding both sides would slow down to take care of pedestrians – school children, senior citizens, aged people and ailing people crossing the road stretch from one end to the other side.
g) Reduce the existing width below the flyover near domlur flyover to ISRO gate and from existing U SHAPE to V SHAPE, so that more space is available for bus, maxicabs and other vehicles passing below the flyover to take U TURN from Koramangala – Ejipura stretch. One more pedestrian path can be created below this flyover
h) Vacate the existing petty shop vendor, tender coconut vendor, and a beggar from airport road to koramangala road stretch and make the pavement more easier for pedestrians usage. Daily around 1000 to 2000 IT / BT personnel walk over this stretch towards Maruti Infotech and other companies . Make over of this stretch will immensely help the pedestrians to a great extent.
i) Re orient the road end and flyover space utilization and erect a bus stop below the domlur flyover on both sides of the road, so that traffic flow are regulated and immensely help the commuters seeking change of
j) Recently the CPWD at domlur has started demolishing its age old residential buildings numbering 6 blocks. The venue is Domlur Flyover right side, Service road, 1st Main Road, 14th Cross, Domlur Layout, Bangalore 560071.They have not taken up any precautionary measures to combat the dust and dust particles that is being discharged due to demolition. The adjacent residential houses and ISRO residential housing quarters inmates are the most affected residents due to this demolition The demolition process may go over more than 5 to 10 months as the progress of work is being carried out. Repeated representation and appeals to the government agencies have not resulted in any measures. They say having permitted by pollution board to demolish the building at their own fancy.The dust eminated from the demolition scattering to great heights and distance causing triggering asthama, cold, nausea, breathlessness, choking and other skin related issues to young kids, adults and aged inmates of the locality. The microfine dust settles down through residences of 7and 8th floors house which is almost half a km from demolition through out the night.
As of now this DOMLUR road FLYOVER junction is polluted with 24 hours of NOISE pollution, traffic pollution, morning, evening and night smoke pollution caused by lighting waste and dried leaves by BBMP personnel. The autorikshaws without mufflers causing heavy smoke and sound pollution through out the night as there areno checks on these vehicles. The BMTC age old buses that pass through under the flyover and above thelyover makes thud and thud noises with their strange sounds and smoke emissions. You can also measure the decibel of soundand smoke pollution caused through out 24 hours by installing a device which will be the highest in Bangalore city and suggest measures to bring down the same.
You are requested to kindly inspect the spot and advise the concerned to adopt measures to control the dust and rubbles falling due to demolition and help the residents to breathe easy for some time. With me there are other hundreds of residents joining me to bring this matter to your notice as our appeal.
The measures indicated above will definitely bring relief to residents, pedestrians, commuters, and ease the present congested, choking traffic movement to more meaningful on this stretch KORAMANGALA – DOMLUR INNER RING ROAD, which is required at present scenario in view of the development that has taken place in the locality.
ALL SIGNAL FREE CORRIDORS WILL NOT SURVIVE FOR LONGER TIME IN PASSAGE OF TIME EXCEPT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE PROMOTING THEM.
So what happened to these corridors? Can someone do an RTI to investigate? Seems babus like to announce projects but follow up is always zero!!