BDA may change design of flyover on Seshadri Road

BDA may change design of flyover on Seshadri Road
The Hindu BANGALORE, JULY 17.
 
The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) is tryingto change the design of its proposed flyover on Seshadri Road (Anand RaoCircle) following objections by people and the Bangalore Turf Club(BTC). Some people led by Suresh Heblikar, environmentalist, have opposed theflyover proposal as it will require the felling of over 40 trees thatgive an "umbrella-like" shade to the road.
 
The BTC said that hundreds of its stables would have to be demolished toaccommodate the 800-metre flyover from Khodays Circle to Vasavi Bhavan.The flyover will have a loop from Anand Rao Circle towards the JanataDal office. "We want to save as many trees as possible and take minimum space of theBTC," C.R. Ramesh, engineer-member of the BDA, told The Hindu on Friday.
 
The BDA wanted the main bridge of the proposed Rs. 27.6-crore flyover -awarded to Delhi-based Simplex Concrete Piles (India) Ltd. - to beerected on the centre of the road. Now, it has proposed to push it to aside, towards the racecourse. Under the original plan, there was provision for roads on either side ofthe flyover with a two-metre-wide footpath. Under the proposed changes,there will be a road only on the Gandhinagar side. The changes would save a lot of space, Mr. Ramesh said. Instead ofacquiring about 3,000 square metres of BTC land, the BDA might need onlyabout 1,900 square metres, he added. It would need about 150 squaremetres of the land on which the fire station is located instead of 450square metres as proposed earlier, he said. The BDA hopes to spare the trees on the Gandhinagar side.
 
But thesemodifications are only a proposal now. A decision will be taken soon. The demand of the people was that the racecourse should not be disturbedas it was one of the few lung spaces that have survived in the heart ofthe city. Besides, felling many trees would affect the environment, theysaid. Chandrashekhar, BTC steward, who has questioned the need for theflyover, said about 150 stables would be dislocated by the flyover. Hewas referring to the original plan to acquire 3,000 square metres the ofBTC land.
 
The proposed flyover, for which the work order has been issuedto the construction company, is expected to come up in 16 months. The five-lane main bridge from Khodays Circle to Anand Rao Circle willbe 18.5 metres wide. Beyond this point, it will be a four-lane one. Theloop towards the Janata Dal office will be a two-lane one. The bridgewill be placed on 13 pillars and the loop on two. The turnkey contract amount of Rs. 27.6 crore included charges forshifting electricity, sanitary, and water lines, Mr. Ramesh said.