The benefits of the 7.5 km metro purple line from Mysuru Road to Kengeri station will extend to people travelling from Mysuru to Bengaluru also as one can reach Majestic and other parts of the capital without hassles.
The new line will be inaugurated on Monday and commuters from Mysuru travelling by road or train to Bengaluru can now terminate their journey at Kengeri itself and opt for the metro service. The metro station is just a few steps away from the Kengeri bus terminal.
This will provide significant reduction in commuting time to reach interiors of Bengaluru as the traffic from Kengeri and beyond tends to clog the road and vehicles move at a snail’s pace during peak and even non-peak hours.
“During peak hours the journey from Kengeri to Byappanahalli takes about 2 hours by bus or car and is taxing and does not facilitate same-day return’’, according to Ravi, a former railway employee and a frequent traveller from Mysuru to Byappanahalli. But with the inauguration of the new metro service from Kengeri people can board the metro and breeze their way into Bengaluru, he said.
People who wish to use their private vehicles but loathe the drive inside Bengaluru also can terminate their journey at Kengeri, park their vehicle and take the metro which will be more convenient and save time, said Mr. Ravi.
The same benefits can accrue to train passengers as well in case they terminate their journey at Kengeri station. At times trains from Mysuru tend to get stranded at Kengeri for 20 to 25 or even 30 minutes as the platforms that receive trains from Mysuru tend to be occupied by other out-bound trains.
Until the platform is free the trains at Kengeri do not receive the green signal to proceed resulting in enormous waste of time. Though the journey from Mysuru to Kengeri tends to be hassle-free by both train and bus or car, it is the drive beyond Kengeri that adds to the commuting time. The new metro service has the potential to reduce the hassle, provided people opt for multi-mode transportation.
Sources in the railways said multi-modal integration is vital for the benefits of metro to reach users from Mysuru and it was now imperative for more trains to be provided stoppages at Jnanabharathi Halt.
The Jnanabharathi metro station is next to Jnanabharathi Halt station but only two MEMU services from Mysuru to Bengaluru stop here. If additional trains are provided stoppages at Jnanabharathi Halt, it can help decongestion at KSR Bengaluru Station and also save lot of time for commuters from Mysuru, the sources added.
