BENGALURU: Eight years after it was initially supposed to be built, the BDA has finally began the work on building of the second half of an underpass at the National Skill training institute junction (popularly known as Kanteerava Studios junction) on the Outer Ring Road.
One half of the underpass, towards Peenya, was already completed many years ago, however, the underpass was not put to use, as the other half, was being delayed due to land acquisition issue.
The completion of the underpass will come as a big relief to residents of Rajajinagar, Nandini Layout, Mahalakshmi Layout and Kuruburahalli, moving towards Tumukuru as the stretch of road will have faster moving traffic.
A senior BDA official told TNIE, “We began the demolition a couple of days ago. The project had come to a standstill due to land acquisition issues. The compensation issues have finally been sorted, and we are demolishing 31 buildings here, to build the underpass and service roads. Of course, traffic diversion will have to be taken up in stages. We are targeting to complete the work in six months.”
“The overall cost of the land acquisition for the underpass and the already functional roads and flyover totally came up to Rs 136 crore as it is all part of one project. The underpass land acquisition could roughly amount to Rs 26 crore,” he added.
During the peak hours, the junction is bursting at the seams with vehicles coming in from all sides, particularly huge trucks, with loud honking all around, pedestrians can be seen darting across the road in the face of heavy traffic.
A few shops on the road stretch were picking up their items, as the BDA has marked them for demolition to build service roads for public to divert traffic when the underpass work begins.
N Raghavendra, a real estate promoter and resident at Nandini Layout says, “Any infrastructure work is welcome as it really improves the area and makes the area progress. Those travelling towards Laggare and Peenya will also benefit much when the underpass is ready.”
Raju M, a resident of Laggare says, “Whenever I want to go to my hometown in Kunigal, using the underpass will save me from the traffic. Same for those heading towards Yesvantpur railway station.”
Another resident Kumar Babu said, “It will really help all motorists going towards Tumakuru for work. I think BDA will take atleast a year to complete the work.”