First-ever steel flyover in city planned

First-ever steel flyover in city planned
The city will see the country’s first-ever steel flyover on Tank Bund Road
The Times of India


The Majestic area is up for development. Even while the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and the Bangalore Mass Rapid Transit Ltd (BMRTL) authorities are busy with the drawing boards to make this all important terminal a transport hub, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) is putting up the country's first-ever steel flyover at the Shantala Circle.

Speaking on the project, BDA Commissioner M N Vidyashankar says, "the existing junction handles 10,240 PCU per hour during peak hours and we expected it to grow to 13,760 PCU per hour by 2015 with plans being mooted for the metro rail main junction and KSRTC bus junction already in place. It becomes inevitable with these developments to make this crucial junction completely signal-free by putting up a flyover here. And this time we are going ahead with the idea of a steel flyover. While traditional flyovers take considerable time and disrupt traffic flow, mobile flyovers can be erected in hardly any time. Sometimes, they take as less as one-tenth the time of conventional flyovers."

Tenders have been floated and soon the project-implementing agency will commence the project, he says, adding that the actual cost of the project is yet to be arrived at.

Giving details about the concept, the commissioner says, "it involves assembly of pre-fabricated and factory made structural steel elements on ready-to-erect foundations on the ground. The flyover will be made of standardised components held together with high tensile bolts and nuts. It is erected using cranes and can also be assembled using a balanced cantilever process and they can be dismantled and shifted to another location if needed. Also, they hardly require any maintenance."

The proposed project will set the trend for future infrastructure projects of similar kinds where timeframes are crucial. They will also come in handy to clear bottlenecks along the road to the proposed international airport on the other end of the city. In the heart of the city, these flyovers can solve the problems at major junctions that are facing regular jams due to the cascading effect of traffic flowing in from the completed flyovers along the route. These flyovers can help reduce stress at crucial junctions easily and without too much disruption. Shifting of utility lines too will not be required to the extent as in the case of conventional flyovers. The concept

Flyover from Dharmambudi Road (Tank Bund Road) in Upparpet to Gubbi Thotadappa Road and underpass from TCM Royan Road to KSRTC Bus Depot and Gubbi Thotadappa Road to Tank Bund Road. Grade-level movement from Gubbi Thotadappa Road to Tank Bund Road and towards Bhashyam Road.

Two more to follow…
The BDA has planned two mobile flyovers in the proposed 1,230 acres Hi-tech City and Corridor project. As part of this project, the BDA will be developing an express highway of 8.5 km length and 460 metres wide that connects the Airport Road and Electronic City.

The express highway will be a six-lane bi-directional corridor that would cost Rs 138 crores and will include two mobile flyovers across two lakes - Kaikondanahalli small and big lakes. The length of the bigger mobile flyover will be 805 metres and the smaller one will be 350 metres. They are needed to ensure a smooth traffic flow on this sector that will see a large number of cars once the project is in place. The lakes are on the stretch between Iblur junction and Sarjapur Road. While it is not yet clear just how many vehicles would pass over them in peak hours, the flyovers will be capable of bearing any load.