BENGALURU: The Bengaluru Cantonment railway station, which was to be re-developed by the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC), will now be given a major upgrade by the constructions division of the South Western Railway (SWR) Zone itself. This comes in the light of the winding down of the IRSDC.
Speaking to TNIE, SWR General Manager Sanjeev Kishore said that enhancing passenger amenities will be the priority. “We are conceptualising a detailed plan in consultation with other railway organisations, the State Government and other Bengaluru-based organisations. Providing more facilities to the public is our priority. The station will have two new platforms and better parking facilities and space for passengers,” he said.
Cantonment has four platforms of which 1, 1A and 2 can accommodate full-length trains while Platform 1B is only for the smaller sized MEMU/DEMU trains. Another official said, “The addition of new platforms will ensure that more trains can be run from Cantonment as well as the soon-to-be-launched Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal at Baiyappanahalli.”
A railway source said, “The major problem faced by passengers here is the acute shortage of parking space. People have to cross over from the bigger parking lot across the road to reach the station in the face of heavy traffic. The ticket booking area is really cramped and the concourse area at the main entry is small. The rear entry too is congested and the roads leading from it are quite narrow. We want to improve all these aspects.”
The redevelopment will be a major challenge due to the paucity of space. “Since we border the main road, the traffic police need to be roped in and road diversions need to be planned. Co-ordination with other projects like the exclusive Suburban Rail Terminal and the Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project have to be done,” the source said.
Despite being the oldest station in the City, it lacks vital facilities, putting passengers to hardship. “Passengers have to climb steep stairs to cross between Platforms 1 and 2. We have often noticed the disabled, women and particularly senior citizens, find it difficult to cross between platforms,” he added.