BENGALURU: Augmentation work at Hebbal flyover, carried out by Bangalore Development Authority, and already delayed by eight years, is set for further delays. The creation of three new lanes from the airport side towards the city, which had been going on briskly, has come to a halt as traffic police have refused permission to close a service road here for three months. Such a closure without an alternative arrangement will create traffic havoc near the flyover, already notorious for regular traffic bottlenecks, police say.
The Rs 225-crore plan to decongest the flyover includes three signal-free lanes from the airport to the city, as well as in the return direction, a bridge beyond the railway line and an underpass from Tumakuru to KR Puram. Work is to be completed in two phases. The first phase, at a cost of Rs 80 crore, has been contracted to PJB Engineering.
A source from the contractor said, “We are carrying out work for three lanes from the Railway line up to Baptist Hospital on service road, just in front of Hebbal police station. Piling work has been completed for 7 piers (pillars) out of 16. However, to complete the remaining piers, we need to close the service road for three months for excavation work. Traffic police have not given us permission to close the road and we cannot proceed. Next month, we will lay pier caps for the pillars that are laid. Nothing can be done beyond that.”
A top traffic police officer said if the service road is closed, it would create chaos. “BDA needs to utilise the road next to the service road and create a way there for just 200 metres. The footpath can be demolished. A width of 3-3.5 metres is preferred to allow a bus or an ambulance to pass through. It could cost a maximum of Rs 10 lakh and can be done in a couple of days. When traffic flow is diverted to that road, we can permit closure of the service road,” he explained. The service road is used by thousands of vehicles, including 24 High Court judges in the Nyaya Grama (judges’ quarters), he said, adding that if the service road is closed, they have to take a detour of 2km to reach court.
Asked about this possibility, the contractor said it is an unsafe option. “If the service road is closed and traffic diverted next to the mosque, it would be unsafe for all vehicles to use that road when excavation is on,” he explained. Another major issue is that BDA is yet to call for tenders for three lanes in the reverse direction. Even if these three lanes from the airport are ready, they cannot be used as no work has been done in the opposite direction.