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Road over drains - the project is back

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Written By silkboard - 29 March, 2008

Traffic Bangalore BBMP Drains

It was just over an year ago when BBMP talked about the project - about 250 km of roads over Bangalore's storm water drains. Local papers, when covering BBMP budget today, are saying that this project is now funded. Here is a quote from TOI:

"Here’s what people can see within one year: Bangalore will see its first set of toll roads that will be built over storm water drains. Four such roads are proposed under the Swiss Challenge method (14.7 km in the budget): KH Road to Inner Ring Road of Koramangala (5.1 km); Old Madras Road to Airport Road in Challaghatta Valley (2.7 km); Airport Road to Bellandur tank in Challaghatta valley (4.2 km) and Outer Ring Road to Raja Canal STP of Hebbal Valley (2.7 km). Infrastructure major IDEB has offered to take up the project. "

Getting to see this in an year sounds like a stretch. But, interesting stuff. These would be tolled roads. No mention of tolls yet. Not sure how many exit and entry points these roads will have. No talk of dedicated Bus corridors on them. That BBMP tender last year had talked about "upto 250 km" of roads. Is there a bigger plan for 200-250 km worth of road network, or the current proposal (about 30 km) is only a piece-meal project? Last, was this part of CTTP, or is outside of that project?

So lots of questions, we should hopefully be getting the answers over next few days.

COMMENTS

Chennai MRTS

silkboard - 30 March, 2008 - 13:43

If I remember it right, the Chennai MRTS - either all or a part of it - is built atop a drain if I remember. since the drains dont pass through thick residential or commercial areas, a new public transport system may not be viable. Dedicated bus corridors could work, the buses can then use these stretches to bypass crowded 'business' roads. Tolled road too is a good idea, it should help separate long distance traffic from local commuters. Lets wait to hear more on the project.

be careful what you wish for.

tsubba - 30 March, 2008 - 14:03

it should not be a giant leap for man kind to build transport networks over drains, but they need to take extra extra special care not to choke the drains. they exist where they exist for a special reason - topography. that is not designed to be where it is, it is where it is because that is how physics works. they messed up ejipura by just cutting a layout, imagine mindless building over what little drain space remains. when people talk of roads in challaghatta valley, and roads to bellandur tank, gives me the creeps. (that is rich, how would ToI like to be called a tabloid instead of a newspaper? then why do they call a lake a tank?) city is built on its drains, people who neglect them get what they deserve. bangaloreans need no intro to this and need nt look beyond the annual silkboard floods. but madurai and mysore are good examples. madurai built massive drain network way back when. modern lords of madurai have no clue where they are. ditto mysore. example, talk to gouri satya he will give you the skinny on that. people not interested in gouri satya's words lord over flooding of KR circle every time it rains.

ditto thoughts

silkboard - 30 March, 2008 - 14:10

The language in that TOI article - "road to bellandur tank" - gave me the exact same feelings. How exactly will they build these roads? Another point Tarle. In our city, rather country, good roads always lead to 'ribbon development' around them. Chances of that happening around stinking drain would be low. But what if apartments and complexes start popping up around and (with help of 'pulls' n bribes) on the edges of the drains themselves? As I said, we need to watch this project carefully.

back door faces a highway?!

blrsri - 31 March, 2008 - 05:35

Anepalya Yenka comes out thru the back door in the morning with a chombu, only to be shaken seeing..passengers in a bus giving him weird looks!

 

  • Covering the drains is good but care should be taken to not make the water below to stagnate..then we will surely have all kinds of epidemics.
  • The problem for stagnation now is dumping of debris into the drains...this needs to be stopped too.
  • The earliest ROD planned was the Mysore road chord road jn..theres hardly any progress on that.

Instead of building roads

mcadambi - 30 March, 2008 - 11:33

Instead of building roads over the drains - it is much more effective to build a 'Sky Bus' system over them. This would have more capacity, carry more passengers and consume lesser fuels and use space in a much more ergonomic fashion.

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