National Highway 209 (Kanakapura Road) connecting Bangalore with Mysore via Kanakapura, Malavalli and Bannur, is being promoted as an alternative road between the two cities.
According to B.H. Anil Kumar, Managing Director, Karnataka Road Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL), a good chunk of the vehicle volume on it is “local traffic”, traversing between various towns and industrial units between Bangalore and Ramanagaram. Hence, Mysore-bound traffic could be routed through the alternative highway via Kanakapura, which is only 15 km longer than the regular route.
Many commuters hit this road when the State Highway via Mandya was being upgraded.
Though it is a picturesque stretch, absence of amenities such as hotels and vehicle service centres could be a problem. Besides, the road quality is poor.
BMIC
The Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) envisages a 111-km expressway is designed to provide a fast and comfortable journey. Unfortunately, the project, executed by Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises (NICE), is mired in litigation and political controversy, largely due to land acquisition issues.
Conceived and launched in the late 1990s, little progress has been made on the expressway, which NICE Managing Director Ashok Kheny had promised would cut the commute between the two cities to an hour.
The four-lane expressway, expandable to six, is designed for safe travel at 120 kmph. The access-controlled expressway requires a total of 20,193 acres of land.
