BBMP proposes 18-km tunnel road with five entries, exits

Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s vision to decongest Bengaluru’s traffic through tunnel roads has gathered momentum as the BBMP plans to engage a new consultant to prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR).

In the first stage, the civic body wants to build an 18-kilometre tunnel road between Hebbal and Central Silk Board with five entry and exit points for vehicles.

The entry and exit points planned are Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) quarters at Central Silk Board, Lalbagh, Bangalore Golf Club, Palace Grounds and the vacant government land adjacent to Esteem Mall near the Hebbal flyover.

With this alignment, the tunnel road will run parallel to Namma Metro’s upcoming metro line proposed between Sarjapur Road and Hebbal.

On Friday, the BBMP invited reputed consultants with experience of working on similar projects to build underground vehicular viaducts to participate in the tender until June 14.

BBMP engineer in-chief BS Prahlad said the stretch has been picked based on a feasibility study by a reputed firm.

“We have proposed entry and exit points in government-owned places. The land acquisition cost will be almost zero. No decision has been taken whether the project will be funded by the government or taken up through public private partnerships,” he said.

The BBMP has estimated that the 18-kilometre tunnel road will cost Rs 8,000 crore, roughly about Rs 444 crore per kilometre. The road will be double decked with one lane coming below the other and will be boat shaped. Officials said the road will be five- or six-lane and the DPR will determine the finer details.

Reliable sources said the BBMP will not undertake construction of the whole stretch at a single phase. "The work will be implemented in phases and the stretch between Hebbal and Palace Ground would be first priority,” Prahlad said.

The BBMP spent about Rs 4 crore to prepare a feasibility report to propose solutions to decongest Bengaluru traffic. The tunnel road is the latest among several solutions the government has proposed over the years to solve the city’s infamous traffic issue.

Steel flyover

During Siddaramaiah’s first term as chief minister, a steel flyover was proposed between Hebbal and Basaveshwara Circle, but the project was shelved as the public opposed ‘car-friendly’ projects that do not solve the traffic issues.

The government subsequently proposed a bunch of elevated corridors, specifically during the chief ministerial tenure of HD Kumaraswamy, but this too fell apart after the regime change.