Traffic decongestion dreams costlier as PRR is delayed

Traffic decongestion dreams costlier as PRR is delayed

Staff Reporter

Project aims at diverting heavy vehicles from city, outer ring road

BANGALORE: Had the Government acted in time, the city would have had a six-lane 109-km peripheral ring road at a cost of Rs. 550 crore. The delay has led to the cost escalation by over Rs. 2,000 crore, though the revised plans have additional features.

The project aims at diverting heavy vehicles from the city and the outer ring road and ease the traffic in the arterial roads.

G. Aswatha Narayana, former technical adviser to Bangalore Development Authority, who was closely associated with the planning of the project, said the revised estimates of the project had gone up to Rs. 2,675 crore.

Had the project been implemented in 2004 when the BDA passed a resolution implement the project, it could have been implemented at Rs. 650 crore, taking possible cost escalation into account.
Double track line

Describing it as a “good project,” Mr. Aswatha Narayana said it had provision for double track railway line too all along the ring road. Other interesting features were ducts all along for telephone, electric cables, water lines and storm water drains. Besides, two-lane service roads had been planned on either side. More importantly, all the 12 major intersections would have no traffic signals and adequate provisions were to be made for people to cross the road keeping future development of the areas on either side of the road. It has been suggested to the BDA to acquire adequate lands at intersections to provide for parking, commercial complexes and truck terminals.

He regretted that even the land acquisition had not begun for the project that needed 2,800 acres of land and the detailed project report was being prepared even at this stage.

The revised plan had a provision for eight-lane traffic movement in the main carriageway. It would carry about 10,000 trucks a day when ready.

Former BDA Chief Engineer K.G. Karnik, who too was closely associated with the planning for the project, wondered whether the people would ever forgive the State Government for the inordinate delay in implementing the project.