BENGALURU: Eyeing an extended weekend, thousands of people were seen taking Metro ride to the City railway station on Friday. But for them, reaching the railway station from Metro station was no less than an ordeal.“It took just 12 minutes from Nayandahalli to Sangolli Rayanna Metro station. But it took more than 20 minutes to reach platform number seven at City railway station from where I have to board Chennai Shatabdi train. The stretch is not easy to walk, especially for those with kids and luggage,’’ said Nischitha, a resident of Nayandahalli who took the Purple line Metro (East-West) train.
With trains departing between 3.30 and 4.30 pm, people travelling to Mysuru, Chennai, Arsikere, Shivamogga and Tumakuru were seen literally trekking with their luggage.The ordeal begins when commuters come out of Metro station. To reach railway station, which is just 300m away, they have to first get down the metal staircase and then walk on a muddy road. Later, they take uneven steps to reach the bridge. From there, they walk 10 minutes to the platform.
Commuters fear that situation will get worse at proposed stations like New Bamboo Bazaar, which is a kilometre away from Cantonment railway station. People have to either take autos or cabs or walk the roads with high traffic flow. Residents are demanding a station close to Cantonment, but BMRCL seems to be going ahead with its station plan at New Bamboo Bazaar. Pointing to the metal staircase, Yugandar Singh, who was travelling to Chennai, said, “The stairs have been here for eight months. With rusting, one can easily get hurt. Hundreds of senior citizens and children use the stairs.”
A senior BMRCL official said, “We had requested South Western Railways to give land on the station premises and we are constructing staircase along with two-way escalators. This will be in continuation with the existing Metro station. We need at least three to four months to complete the work.”