Ravi Melwani, ex-retailer, philosopher and New Age guru, is a great believer in the mantra called PMA or “positive mental attitude.” Since we are in the auspicious month of Vijaydashimi, it may be worthwhile cultivating a PMA by taking a look at the few slender beacons of hope on our horizon, instead of moaning and groaning about our civic woes and the slings and arrows the (undivided) BBMP has in store for us.
Let’s start with KIAL, the public-private consortium built by the GVK group being run with metronomic Swiss precision by a talented team that has managed to get almost everything right. Of the futuristic design, the luxuriant swards of greenery and foliage and the meticulous attention to detail, especially the rain-water harvesting and recycling plant, one can scarcely speak too highly. But perhaps the best thing about KIAL is that they give a s**t: someone actually sits and reads suggestions or complaints and follows up on them.
Some months ago, I landed at 10 pm only to discover that cabs were as scarce a commodity as respect for women in Trump Tower. Apparently the traffic cops had shut down the flyover to deter stunt bikers leading to a mammoth jam, although how precisely this was supposed to put a crimp in antics of the wheelie-wily coyotes was unclear. Without further ado, one of the logistics staff stepped in and took charge of the shortage by assigning four commuters to a cab with the efficiency Uber pool would have envied.
Which brings me by an admittedly circuitous route to my point: why does this government persist in pursuing high-cost, illogical solutions when sweet, luscious low-hanging fruit are available at a fraction of the cost? In 2014, Aarvee Associates delivered a comprehensive report on a commuter rail system, ironically commissioned by the same babus who subsequently ensured it never saw the light of day. A well-wisher sent me a copy and while space constraints preclude reproducing the Full Monty, the gist is as follows:
- Between the SEZ, surrounding business parks and passengers, around 500,000 visitors and employees will be using the airport road on a daily basis, come 2018.
- l In the second phase of development, KIAL is ramping up to handle 55 million passengers annually. So like they say in Texas, if you think traffic sucks now, hang on honeybunch, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
- Enter CRS, a commuter rail solution with two options, Section A from City to Devanahalli via Yelahanka and A-B via Yeshwanthpur, which will cover the 50km distance in 72 minutes at a booked speed of 75 kmph. Currently 30,000 riders use the Metro, but with CRS, one can attract ten times that number with a catchment extending from 1-5km on either side of the line. To further decongest the roads, it may be advisable to add a dedicated Metro Rail link from Electronic City to KIAL and have our geeks rejoice.
- We have only one access road to the airport and traffic density is currently at 42,000 trips per hour at KIAL from just Bengaluru West and Central. This could have been overcome by a cloverleaf design at Hebbal, the objective of which is to allow two highways to cross without traffic stopping, but that’s another story.
Is there a catch? Yes, the Yeshwanthpur-Yelahanka section is single-line and non-electrified, and several nuts, bolts and lines have to be laid and Binny Mills compound to be turned into a marshaling yard, but the bottom line in Aarvee’s report is that this ugly duckling of a project can be turned into the balletic poetry of Swan Lake with a mere injection of Rs 732 cr, give or take a lakh. But don’t take my word for it: find out for yourself. Log onto praja.in and go through the fine print. It’s not rocket science, although vested interests would like us to think it so.
