Traffic jams set to become a thing of the past

BANGALORE: Here is good news for the people of Thippasandra, Malleshpalya, Jeevan Bhimanagar and thousands of employees working with HAL, BEML, ADE and other companies. Now, they need not to worry about traffic jams on Suranjan Das Road that was known for such chaos.Traffic jams are set to become a thing of the past within a few months due to the initiative taken by S Raghu, MLA from C V Raman Nagar Assembly constituency and Corporators Sumithra Vijayakumar (Thippasandra) and M Krishnappa (C V Raman Nagar). ‘‘I have been pursuing the matter with the authorities concerned for more than two years. I am very happy for being able to mitigate traffic-related problems of thousands of people who work in government as well as private companies in the surrounding areas,’’ said Raghu.If everything goes as per plan, the 3.85-km road is set to become a four-lane road thus eliminating traffic jams and reducing the commuting time considerably.‘‘Serpentine queues of vehicles at BEML junction during morning and evening was a common sight for people familiar with this road. It was a tough task for us to regulate traffic,’’ said a traffic police inspector.Suranjan Das Road will be widened from 7.5 metres to 20 to 25 metres and the road will have 12 bus bays. It will have 1.5-metre to 2-metre wide footpaths for the benefit of pedestrians. ‘‘We are planning to complete the widening and strengthening of Suranjan Das Road within 10 months. It will be one of the best maintained roads in Bangalore city,’’ said Raghu.Once the widening of the road is completed, around 18,000 employees of HAL, about 4,500 employees of BEML, 4,000 employees of Bagmane Tech Park and thousands of people who work with various companies are expected to be benefited.‘‘People from Thippasandra, Jeevan Bhimanagar and other areas can reach Namma Metro Station at Byappanahalli within a few minutes,’’ explains Raghu.The BBMP is bearing 75 per cent of the total cost while Bagmane Tech Park has agreed to bear the remaining 25 per cent. The total cost of the project is estimated to be Rs 14.74 crore.GVR Infrastructure Pvt Limited is the contractor for this work. “We are waiting for the BWSSB to complete the laying of water pipes. I am expecting the widening and strengthening of the road to be completed well before the deadline (10 months),’’ he said.