BENGALURU: Once it gets operational, the proposed Outer Ring Road Metro rail line will result in huge savings of man-hours and resources for commuters who use this stretch. If all goes well as per the plan, it will be functional by 2020. According to an analysis carried out by Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation, commuters who use this stretch will totally save 77,500 man-hours each day. The overall savings for the riders will work out to `1.5 crore each day, which translates into a savings of `527 crore annually.
A separate 17 km Metro line to connect K R Puram and Silk Board (Reach 2A) had been decided upon bearing in mind the fact that every day an average of 4.5 lakh employees travel on this corridor dotted with I-T companies.
Metro’s analytical study indicates that this number would touch 8 lakh employees by 2021.
The Detailed Project Report (DPR)by Metro has assessed that 15 per cent of the city’s vehicular traffic uses this stretch. The 7.2 million sq ft of commercial space here accounts for 20 per cent of the total office space absorption in India, it said.
“IT companies on this corridor engage 2,800 chartered buses, maxi cabs and private buses to ferry their employees,” the report said.
During peak hours, vehicles spend 2 to 3 hours to cover a distance of 5 to 10 km. Employees lose an estimated `20,713 crore annually due to the 90 minutes lost each day in traffic.
“There is an urgent need to provide mass transport facilities to retain the attractiveness index of this area so that business units do not contemplate a shift to other locations,” the report stated.
“The line would not only offer the highest return but also come at the least marginal cost,” it added.
A sum of `4,202 crore would be the total cost of this line that would have an Interchange station at Silk Board. A new depot would be constructed at Whitefield on 30 acres of land to stable the trains.