Corridor to ease Silk Board jam

Corridor to ease Silk Board jam
BBMP all set to build a 20-metre wide corridor which will start at BTM’s 24th main and open on to the Hosur stretch
Manasi Paresh Kumar manasi.pk@timesgroup.com


The perennial jam at the Silk Board Junction has always irked commuters travelling towards Electronic City. Seeing to the comfort of the more than 4 lakh people travelling to this destination on a daily basis has always been a top priority for the powers tha be. The BDA and the BBMP have always tried to come u with solutions to ease the jam on thi stretch. But despite their best effort — ‘at grade’ road solutions, a flyover built at the junction in 2004 and the recent edition of the elevated express way — the jam still remains.
Now, the BBMP has hit upon a new road-engineering solution. The 20-metre corridor (60 feet) as it’s being called, is the BBMP’s brainchild to ease traffic in the junction. “When the first flyover was designed, it was meant to divide the traffic coming in from Madivala and south Bangalore. But now, the influx of traffic from Jayanagar, JP Nagar and BTM layout is so heavy that we have no choice but to divide the same,” says A K Gopalswamy, Chief Engineer (Projects).
This new project which will be an ‘at grade’ road, is a 1.17 km stretch which will start at BTM’s 24th main on the Outer Ring Road, run parallel to the Madivala Tank through Lal Heritage apartments and open on to the Hosur stretch between the two flyovers next to the Mahindra Showroom and Ravi Bar & Restaurant. The project estimated at Rs 25.2 crore is expected to kick-off in about four months. The project’s DPR plans have been sent for approval.
But what’s the big deal? For those currently using the junction, the corridor will reduce commuting distance by only half-a-kilometer. “But look at it from the perspective of saving time. You will reach your destination faster,” says N Ramesh, Executive Engineer, Projects (Central).
The new road will not only reduce the distance to Hosur but also to Bannerghatta Road by about 1 kilometre, say officials.