BENGALURU: Vehicular traffic on the busy Bengaluru-Mysuru highway was thrown out of gear due to flooding following heavy rain and ongoing road work on Saturday. The highway was flooded after a breach in Kanmanike lake in Kumbalgodu near Bidadi. The newly-constructed toll booth was also flooded due to the lake breach. Those heading to their hometowns in Mysuru, Mandya and Kodagu for the weekend and for the Ganesha Chaturthi festival were hit by the disruption in traffic movement and had to take a detour.
Ramanagara District Police diverted traffic to an alternate route for three days, starting Saturday. Vehicles plying between Bengaluru to Mysuru will have to travel via Kanakapura or Kunigal. Heavy rain led to stagnation of water on many stretches of the highway where road work is in progress.
“It is not safe to allow vehicles, especially during the night”, said sources in the police department.
“We have diverted the movement of vehicles. It takes many days to remove water from the road,” sources said. Heavy rain over the last few days has also delayed work on the ongoing Bengaluru-Mysuru Express Corridor and is likely to discourage tourists visiting Mysuru during Dasara next month.