Horamavu railway crossing: Chaos unlimited

Bengaluru: The railway crossing on Horamavu main road has been closed for over six months, inconveniencing passengers and disrupting traffic. People residing beyond the railway gate have to take long detours to reach their destinations.

The underpass, which is being constructed by South Western Railways (SWR) at the railway gate, is expected to cost around Rs 3 crore and the money has already been released by the BDA.

Even when the level crossing was in use, it was a nightmare for commuters as it could sometimes take almost half an hour to cross during peak hours due to bumper-to-bumper traffic. Now due to ongoing construction of the underpass, people need to take winding diversion roads to get across to the other side.

Faisal Pasha, a techie who uses the road everyday, said, “Earlier it only used to take around half an hour to about forty-five minutes for commuters to negotiate the railway crossing. Now we have to take an alternate route which is extremely confusing, if you are not familiar with the locality.”

He said the lives of schoolchildren are at risk as they have to walk over the now unmanned level crossing to get to the other side. CMRIMS student and local resident, Shrishti P. said, “I stay near the big Banyan tree on the other side of the level crossing. I have to walk through bushes and negotiate the level crossing to go to college every day.”

Chemist Mohan of Pavan Medicals stressed that the closure of the railway crossing was causing a lot of problems to the local residents. “Earlier this was a very busy road, but the closure of the railway gate has complicated things. God knows when the underpass will be completed. Hopefully traffic flow will improve after the underpass is completed.”

A worker involved in the underpass project, who did not want to be named, said, “The underpass should be over in the next few months. Then there will be uninterrupted flow of vehicular traffic.”

Underpass work likely to be over in six months: Radhamma Venkatesh
DC talks to  local corporator Radhamma Venkatesh
Excerpts.

Why are the railways taking so long to reopen the level crossing?
For a long time, commuters have been suffering due to the absence of an underpass. According to what we know, there is a cable that has to stretch from one side to another. This I believe is delaying the project.

Commuters are complaining about traffic disruptions and the fact that the railway crossing is currently unmanned and people need to negotiate bushes to cross the gate. What are you doing about their safety?
Yes it is quite dangerous. If the people ask for lights we shall have them installed. In fact we are seriously looking at it.

Are you working in collaboration with the South Western Railways?
Yes, absolutely. If you remember, it was the BDA which released money to the SWR to build the underpass. The BDA is working hand in hand with the railways to ensure the underpass is constructed in time. Once the underpass is ready, it will have four lanes and help ease traffic flow and mitigate jams. We’re hoping to finish it within the next six months.