As a measure to decongest the busy Outer Ring Road (ORR), the government will soon remove illegal shops and business establishments that have come up along the road, said Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru Development Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Saturday.
During a meeting with the Outer Ring Road Companies Association (ORRCA), Mr. Shivakumar said the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) would start marking illegal shops which had worsened the traffic situation along the ORR. As one-fifth of the revenue generated in Bengaluru was from the companies operating from the ORR region, it was the duty of the government to take care of the concerns of the people here, he said. “Without buckling under any pressure, we will remove all the shops which are operating illegally,” he said.
The ORR was in the news recently after it witnessed a massive traffic gridlock, forcing people to stay on the road for more than three hours. Apart from citizens and citizen groups holding discussions on social media, the ORRCA had given a memorandum to the government recommending a slew of measures. This led Mr. Shivakumar to hold a meeting with the ORRCA on Saturday.
Sources in the BBMP said as soon as the civic body receives formal instructions from Mr. Shivakumar, illegal properties would be marked for demolition. The BBMP may focus on shops located close to the road and there were many such establishments as the stretch between K.R. Puram and Silk Board had high profitability, they said.
Mr. Shivakumar assured the ORRCA that in three months, potholes on the ORR, which are also contributing to the slow movement of vehicles, would be fixed.
Already, the traffic police have identified six to eight congestion points and measures are being taken to manage traffic. However, the ORRCA in its memorandum submitted to the government had identified 36 such points.
Recently, a city-based expert group proposed imposing a congestion tax during peak hours on busy roads, including the ORR. This issue, however, was not discussed in the meeting.
Dy.CM inspects 45-metre road project
Mr. Shivakumar, after inspecting the 45-metre road project that connects the ORR and the proposed Peripheral Ring Road passing through Bhoganahalli, Gunjur, and Varthur, said roadworks up to 4 km had been completed and work on another 1.6 km was pending. The government has to acquire land from the Forest Department and a railway bridge has to be constructed on the stretch where the work is pending.
