BENGALURU: Experts have lauded Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s idea of building tunnel roads across the city to ease traffic congestion. This comes a day after Shivakumar, who is also Bengaluru Development Minister, held a meeting with officials of various agencies, including international design agency AECOM India, on the feasibility of building tunnel roads in the city.
Experts from Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Indian Road Congress and other agencies lauded the idea, but expressed their reservations over the expenses.
JM Chandra Kishen, professor, Department of Civil Engineering, IISc, said the tunnel work will not be noisy and with the latest technology available, it is easy to execute. Tunnel roads can connect inner and outer ring roads. He, however, cautioned that the project may be a bit expensive.
“The idea of tunnel roads is good, but it is only an alternative. The government should improve infrastructure in Tier 2 cities with easy access to airports and railway stations. This will reduce the burden on Bengaluru,” Kishen said.
Member of Indian Road Congress D Prasad said, “The idea of tunnel road is good as it has worked in London and other top cities across the world. Tube, the underground road in London, is a successful project. However, safety should be given top priority. The tunnel should not get flooded like the KR Circle underpass.”
“There should be a flawless underground drainage system. There should be diversion channels and high-capacity pump sets to pump water in case of floods. These pumps should automatically pump water during emergencies,” Prasad said.
Officials from AECOM India, who presented designs of tunnel roads, explained their pros and cons to Shivakumar and MLAs from the city on Monday. They said Shivakumar is not in favour of elevated flyovers as he thinks they will cause traffic jams and lead to chopping of trees.