Mega revamp plan for City

Mega revamp plan for City
Bangalore, Sep 6, DH News Service:

With a massive financial outlay of Rs 22,000 crore, the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) plans to drastically change the face of the City’s roads, drains and lakes in three years.


The proposal — presented on Saturday by Transport Minister R Ashok — under the Capital Investment Plan for Bangalore (2009-12) consists of 12 major signal-free corridors cutting across the City, three elevated corridors, strengthening of arterial and sub-arterial roads, construction of 40 railway over and underbridges, elevated roads built over stormwater drains, remodelling of drains and revival of City’s lakes.

The cost involved is huge. But the minister is confident that the money will be mobilised by the BBMP with contributions from the State government, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), public-private-participation (PPP), and Central funds channelised through the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and other loans on government surety.

Ashok said the existing financial resources would be utilised in a phased manner.
With the BBMP setting aside Rs 5,700 crore, the government is aiming to raise Rs 8,300 crore through bonds and loans obtained by the government guarantee. The BDA will contribute Rs 2,000 crore with another Rs 2,000 crore to be raised through the PPP model.

BBMP Commissioner Bharat Lal Meena said the Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited (HUDCO) and a few consortia have come forward to extend financial assistance.

To implement the project for the first year, the BBMP will require anywhere between Rs 3,000 crore and Rs 5,000 crore. Announcing the projects, which broadly outline the vision for Bangalore, Ashok said the entire proposal would be presented before the chief minister on his return from China. “We are hoping to complete all the projects in tandem with the completion of Bangalore Metro Rail,” he said.

On the repayment of the loans, Ashok said the profits earned by the BBMP and the tax collected from the TMCs and CMCs would be sufficient.

Grade separators

To make 12 key corridors signal-free, the plan is to equip over 100 junctions with grade separators. The total road length covered under this project will be 122 km, a network connecting the Central Business District (CBD) with Outer Ring Road and Radial Roads.

With the newly added zones of the BBMP, connectivity of arterial and sub-arterial roads to national highways (NH) and state highways (SH), is also high on the agenda.

The Palike has identified 499 kilometres of roads in the new zones for widening, strengthening and asphalting. This is critical to provide inter-zonal connectivity, and connectivity with state highways (SH) and national highways (NH).

Another important proposal is the construction of three elevated corridors, in the City’s north, south and east to decongest traffic. The south corridor will run from Vellara junction to Silk Board, the north corridor from Minsk Square to Hebbal flyover and the east corridor from Vellara junction to Kundanahalli junction.

The proposed elevated roads on stormwater drains will be built over the drains in the Koramangala and Vrishabhavathi valleys. Forty important railway overbridges and underbridges are also to be built.

Improvement of the existing markets and construction of new markets in the newly added BBMP zones are the other key proposals. Improvement of lakes, building of new parks, construction of sky-walks in signal-free zones, too, have also been proposed.