Activating a campaign to ‘Bury the Metro,’ Citizen’s Agenda for Bengaluru, a people’s collective, has urged Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy to set up an alternative underground metro system for the city. It could be funded by diverting the Rs 35,000 crore earmarked for the elevated corridor, which it felt is ‘ill-advised.’
In an open letter, posted on Facebook, the collective articulated the plan’s objective: “If you are looking for a single big project, and something that will bring about (a) positive change, and transform Bengaluru back to a Garden City, this will be it.”
The plan would be this: “Establish an efficient underground plan that connects the population centres in the city directly, without having to align with the existing roads. This would mean there will be no need for the twisting and turning routes that create more maintenance costs, and inefficient rides.”
Once this system is in place, “dismantle the entire elevated metro network and recover the overland road space” is the collective’s suggestion.
The recovered space could be redeveloped through wide footpaths to prioritise pedestrians, cycling lanes, trees and garden corridors, and dedicated bus lanes that can eventually establish a bus rapid transit corridor.
But what about the elevated sections of the metro infrastructure, the piers and bridges?
“Transplant and reuse them to build bridges across the state infrastructure, where they are required,” says the collective.
The big idea is to go back to the drawing board and replan, by also setting up a Unified Transport Authority (UMTA) that will ensure a proper, intuitive interconnection between all modes of transport.
“This will be a transport infrastructure project that will have no opposition from citizens, and future generations will thank you,” the collective told the chief minister.