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Travel time between Bengaluru and Mysuru will reduce to 90 minutes once ten-lane highway is completed, says Simha

MYSURU: Hassle-free and quick commute between Mysuru and Bengaluru has been one of the key issues that the Karnataka government has been keen on resolving for more than a decade, regardless of which political dispensation has been in power at the Vidhana Soudha. Over the past few weeks, Mysuru MP Pratap Simha has repeatedly highlighted the need for improving the district’s connectivity in order to usher in development.

On Sunday, the Parliamentarian, who inspected ongoing work on the ten-lane highway between Bengaluru and Mysuru at Gananguru village in Srirangapatna on Sunday, said that people would be able to travel between the two cities in all of 90 minutes once the project was completed.

The National highways Authority of India (NHAI), which has been entrusted the responsibility to execute the project, is building two helipads along the highway in order to ensure that VIP movement is unhindered, and more importantly, does not affect regular traffic on the road. The two helipads are being developed near Dabangudda in Maddur, and Ganjam in Srirangapatna, both in Mandya district.



Simha exuded confidence of the project being completed in two years. Elaborating on the benefits that the two cities would accrue from the expansion of the road, Simha said, “Number of accidents on the stretch will come down. Seamless connectivity will boost tourism in Mysuru.”

Superintendent engineer and project director BT Sridhar said that the expansion of the road was being undertaken in two phases, at a total cost of Rs 7,400 crore. “In the first phase, we are expanding the road from the Panchamukhi Ganesha temple, which is near NICE Road to Nidaghatta village in Maddur. This 56km-stretch is being developed at the cost of Rs 3,900 crore, of which the construction cost is Rs 2,300 crore, and Rs 1,600 crore is being utilised for land acquisition,” said Sridhar.

Meanwhile, in the second phase of the project, the stretch between Nidaghatta to Columbia Asia Hospital Junction on Outer Ring Road (ORR) in Mysuru will be expanded, and a sum of Rs 3,500 crore has been earmarked for the second leg of expansion of the highway. “A 700m-long grade separator, designed in the shape of a clover leaf will be built at the junction on ORR to ensure there is no vehicular gridlock at the key circle,” said Sridhar.

On the progress in the land acquisition process, Sridhar said that NHAI had obtained nearly 80% of the property, marked for expansion, in the first stretch, while the agency had acquired 60% of the land needed for the second phase of the expansion. “There are many villages in Mandya district, where houses have been constructed on government land abutting the road, and we are holding discussions with the property owners. We are keen to compensate them by offering sites at an alternative location,” Sridhar added.

On the volume of traffic the road recorded, Sridhar said that, on average, 34,000 vehicles used the road on a daily basis. “Although the standard rate of increase in traffic movement is 7% per annum, considering that this road connects Bengaluru and Mysuru, we think this will witness a spike of 12 to 15% every year,” he said.

Grade separators and underbridges for seamless connectivity

First Phase: Panchamukhi Ganesha Temple, Mysore Road, Bengaluru to Nidaghatta, Maddur

*56km length of the first stretch

*Bypass junctions at Bidadi, Ramanagara and Channapatna

*Bridges at Bidadi bypass and, crossing of Arkavathi and Kanva rivers

*10 bus shelters

Second Phase: Nidaghtta, Maddur to Columbia Asia Junction, ORR, Mysuru

*61km length of the second stretch of highway

*Bypass junctions at Maddur, Mandya and Srirangapatna

*Elevated corridors in Maddur and Srirangapatna

*Bridges at canal crossing in Mandya, crossing at Lokapavani River, Srirangapatna Bypass

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