BENGALURU: In what can be called a ‘trial-failure’, the much-awaited bus-priority lane which had its trial since October 20 had its metal bollards removed. The buses until Monday had been plying via the dedicated lanes for a good eight-kilometre stretch. However, 50-60 bollards have been damaged and had to be removed on Tuesday by the city’s civic body, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
“The bollards are being replaced since they were damaged or got dented due to accidents. The cost of each bollard is between Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,000 which we will have to take care of,” BBMP Commissioner B H Anil Kumar told The New Indian Express. This will prove costly for the already Rs 21 crore project.
He also added that as of now, a replacement is not considered. “We cannot use cement either as they may prove to be harmful,” he said. The BBMP had also skipped tenders and taken up the work on its own to meet its deadline on November 1.
The routes from Lowry junction to Marathahalli were on trial and the same was soon to start from Marathahalli to Iblur junction. The 21-kilometer stretch bus priority lane project is under the umbrella of four agencies- Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), Bengaluru Traffic Police (BTP) and DULT (Directorate of Urban Land Transport).
“The trial has been doing well so far but there is a need for effective policing since other vehicles, especially two-wheelers have been