BENGALURU: Following directions from Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru Development Minister DK Shivakumar, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy chaired a meeting on Tuesday to discuss a comprehensive mobility plan for seamless traffic at Banashankari Junction.
This comes days after the DCM laid the foundation for a skywalk at the junction. Three firms, Nagesh Consultants represented by Nagesh, Infra Support Engineering Consultants Pvt Ltd represented by Ratnakar Reddy and NEZ Consultation represented by Kannan, were asked to give the design in a week’s time, said a senior official who attended the meeting.
A senior traffic police officer and GBA Chief Commissioner M Maheshwar Rao suggested they take up a traffic study before designing the project, and pitched for a pedestrian way.
“The initial drawings show an L-shaped skywalk and flyover at the junction. These drawings need more backing from the GBA engineering wing. The suggestion for the flyover has come at a time when the contract and tender have been finalised for a Rs 50-crore worth circular-shaped skywalk by Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), which will connect Banashankari Metro Station and TTMC. The DCM held a ground-breaking ceremony for the project; now it will be a big challenge to incorporate a flyover. Hence, the best design consultants have been roped in for the traffic study,” said an engineer from Bengaluru South City Corporation.
Meanwhile, the minister and GBA chief have given the responsibility to B-Smile to follow up with the designing agencies and submit a report on the feasibility of incorporating a flyover to decongest the area.
AH Basavaraju, former Town Planning Committee chairman of the erstwhile Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, said the project was conceptualised when the BJP was in power in the corporation 10 years ago. “The flyover is likely to decongest traffic at Kanakapura Main Road, BTM-Hosur Road and towards Majestic from Banashankari Junction,” he said.
