: The Mysore Grahakara Parishat (MGP) has said the State government’s decision to convert the Bangalore-Mysore highway into a six-lane road may not be a solution to reduce the commuting time, and the need of the hour was flyovers at critical junctions.
It also called for straightening the existing highway which has too many curves. In a release, R. Chandra Prakash, president, MGP, said the proposed move to upgrade the Bangalore-Mysore highway to a six-lane road reflects its “typical ostrich-like approach to important issues”.
“But it is obvious from this proposal that the government is oblivious to the problems of this highway. How will the public benefit by such upgrades when the problems have not been understood?” Mr. Prakash said. He said the road was widened from two to four lane a few years ago, but that has not decreased the travel time between the two cities and on occasions the time taken is longer than what it used to be prior to four-laning of the road.
The MGP has said that every bypass along the highway has been encroached by commercial establishments which forces vehicles to slow down.
“The examples are Maddur, Channapatana, Ramnagaram, Bidadi, and Kengeri. There are more than 70 speed bumps between the two cities. If the bumps are necessary, they should have been at junctions of cross roads to prevent sudden entry of vehicles onto the highway. Congestion at the entry points of Bangalore, starting from Nayandanahalli and at BHEL factory, adds to the delay,” said the release. Mr. Prakash said inadequacy of trains on the Bangalore-Mysore route compared to the demand has increased the number of buses plying between the two cities, which has added to the problem.
Further, Mr. Prakash said, instances of blocking the highway adds to the delay. Hence, widening the road will not resolve any of the problems.
Hence, the MGP has suggested flyovers at all those bypass roads. It has cited the examples of flyovers enroute to the Bangalore airport and said this has helped in smooth flow of traffic.
