BENGALURU: The Bengaluru-Chennai expressway stretch which is ready within the limits of Karnataka has been unofficially opened for traffic, and 1,600 to 2,000 vehicle users are already using it every day.
Those using the toll-free 68km stretch between Hoskote and KGF (Bethamangala) exit it using the village road to reach Mulbagal and the Andhra Pradesh border. The remaining 3km stretch of the 71km expressway built by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) within Karnataka is likely to be opened by the end of the year, along with the rest of the road outside the state.
The alignment beyond Karnataka goes via Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu up to Sriperumbudur near Chennai. The total length of the four-lane road is 260km. The expressway allows a speed of 120 kmph.
An NHAI official stated, "Motorists are using the stretch from the Hoskote interchange, exiting at Bethamangala. We have put in all road safety measures. All types of vehicles are using the road. Till a notification is issued for the collection of the toll, we cannot restrict any category of vehicles. We've written to the headquarters for collection of tolls and further directions are awaited."
In Karnataka limits, NHAI is likely to operate two toll plazas. After the Bengaluru-Mysuru access-controlled highway was commissioned, NHAI banned the entry of bikes, autorickshaws and tractors on the mainlines of the highway. These categories of vehicles are likely to be banned on the newly opened expressway too.
The Bengaluru-Chennai expressway is linked to the operational Satellite Town Ring Road (STRR) from Dabaspet to Hoskote, which passes through Doddaballapur and Devanahalli. This enables people coming from Tumakuru Road and Bengaluru-Hyderabad Road to access the expressway. NHAI recently floated tenders for the construction of STRR from Dabaspet to the Tamil Nadu border (on the western and southern outskirts of Bengaluru).
Pipeline creates hurdle
Though NHAI has completed the construction of the expressway within Karnataka limits, the presence of a water pipeline of Koramangala-Challaghatta (KC) Valley has created a hurdle at Kolathur (near Hoskote Cloverleaf), where it proposed to build a 480-metre ramp to provide access for motorists coming from the Kolar side using National Highway-75 (Bengaluru-Kolar road) and build an underpass for villagers of Kolathur.
The 2-meter pipeline was laid in 2016-17 to supply treated water to lakes in Kolar. NHAI has approached the minor irrigation department, which took up the project, to study the feasibility of building an underpass. NHAI is likely to identify a suitable location shortly to build the underpass for the benefit of villagers. The construction of the underpass will help Kolathur villagers reach Bengaluru and Kolar.
Proposal to widen Bengaluru-Kolar highway
The expressway is expected to drastically reduce travel time in the future. However, accessing the highway, which starts at Hoskote, is a mammoth task for motorists from Bengaluru. The reason is that they must cross several traffic gridlocks on Old Madras Road to reach the expressway. During peak hours, traffic snarls at various points such as SV Road Metro Station, Byappanahalli, Benniganahalli, Tin Factory and KR Pura will test the patience of motorists heading towards Hoskote. Once a major landmark in the city, the KR Pura cable-stayed bridge built over railway lines has turned into a traffic gridlock now.
An NHAI official said that considering the large traffic volume on the Bengaluru-Kolar highway, there is a proposal to widen the road from the existing four lanes to 10 (six-lane mainline and a four-lane service road).
"With the growth of the city and urbanisation in the outskirts, traffic volume has increased drastically. For example, over 90,000 vehicles cross the Hoskote toll gate every day. This has resulted in traffic congestion at several points beyond KR Pura, such as TC Palya and Battarahalli. There is a proposal to widen the existing road from KR Pura up to the Andhra Pradesh border. This will also ensure seamless access to the Bengaluru-Chennai expressway."