Bangalore: The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) will have to race against time to complete the elevated express highway between Hebbal and Bangalore International Airport in the next 60 days.
Senior NHAI official, Sudarshan, said that all the work will be completed by January end. “The work on underpasses and bridges is being taken up simultaneously and we are confident about finishing the work in the next two months.”
The main elevated structure of 3.9 km between the Esteem Mall and Yelahanka is nearing completion, but there are three more bridges, three pedestrian underpasses and skywalks, and many miles of service road that need to be completed on the 34 km stretch.
Presently about 30,000 vehicles, mostly taxis, ply on this road and there are frequent traffic bottlenecks. Lack of proper signage and service roads add to the woes of travellers on this stretch, especially during the monsoon months.
Experts feel that the work has been going on at a very slow pace for the last one year and it seems difficult to complete the expressway by January 26. “The work on the stretch between Esteem Mall and Vidhya Shilp School in Yelahanka is nearing completion.
But the NHAI is yet to take up work on the service roads. Three months ago there was a three-hour congestion during a rainy evening, exposing the poor alternative arrangements provided by the NHAI.
The vehicles have to move around the signal lights which seem to be erected in the middle of the road after the recent road widening. The traffic police must shift the signal to the end of the road to reduce the chaos among drivers,” said a traffic expert.
The traffic expert also suggested that the BIA authorities and the state government must think about having a second entrance to the international airport. The second entrance could be connected from Nagawara road through which the entire airport-going traffic from Bangalore east can benefit.
