Elevated tech-city road to be India’s longest

Elevated tech-city road to be India’s longest
New Indian Express

BANGALORE: The 9.5-km long elevated expressway to be built by the National Highways Authority of India’s (NHAI) on Hosur Road will be India’s longest. The design is unique and the cost involved is enormous, but it is expected to transform Bangalore’s information technology hub.

Explaining the features of the project for which the foundation stone will be laid on April 2, Director, Span Consultants Pvt. Ltd., S. Sengupta told this website’s newspaper, ‘‘The expressway will start at the Central Silk Board and connect Electronics City Phase I and Phase II with a high-speed access elevated road with no traffic signals throughout the stretch. Our design features four elevated lanes and 10 ground-level lanes. The projects will cost Rs. 450 crore, with the Union and State Governments contributing Rs. 300 crore. The rest has to be brought in by the appointed ‘‘build operate transfer’’ (BOT) contractors.’’

The special feature of the project is that there would be no concreting work done on site. Span’s team leader Anand Theertha said, ‘‘Every segment of the work will be done in a casting yard. All structures will be fabricated and brought to the site by trailers. From here they will be lifted and placed on the superstructure. This will not hamper traffic at the ground level. Span has to ensure that the site can handle 70-80 tons of material a day.’’

‘‘The design is such that a 8.5-metre barricade will be created at the base and the work will go on within the barricaded area,’’ Theertha said.

Sengupta added that the BOT was a contract system that involved complete transparency in operations. ‘‘A BOT contractor cannot halt work saying there has been a rise in cement and material prices. Since most BOT contrators are professional companies, they will not undermine operations because they will be borrowing money. The time period for completion of this project is two years.’’

‘‘Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways T.R. Baalu and the Minister for State for Transport K.H. Muniyappa are likely to be present at the April 2 ceremony,’’ he said.