Bengaluru Metro: The Wait Is Over
Five Chief Ministers, 11 years and an investment of Rs 14,000-odd crore — that’s what it took for Bengaluru’s Namma Metro to complete phase 1 of the metro connectivity. And despite the delays, Bengaluru has patiently waited for the inauguration of the Green Line, which marks the completion of the phase 1 of the project. The Green Line, which connects North and South Bengaluru could indeed be the silver lining city dwellers were waiting for and a progressive stride towards connecting the city end-to-end.
In June 2006, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had laid the foundation stone for the Namma Metro project in Bengaluru with a vision to solve the city’s nightmarish traffic. The construction of the phase 1 began in April 2007 and its first section, connecting Byappanahalli-MG Road (6.7 km with 6 stops) on the Purple Line, opened in 2011. Exactly 11 years later, the final section on the Green Line was inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee on 17 June and commercial operations started the following day. The Green Line, which was originally slated to be operational from 2011, has missed nine deadlines, the latest being in May 2016. Political apathy and technical glitches like the tunnel boring machine’s cutter getting stuck 60 feet below had delayed the project. This was in July 2014. In April 2015, work commenced again after a new cutter was imported from Italy.
Covering a distance of 24.2 km, across 24 stations (Nagasandra to Yelachenahalli), the Green Line is expected to benefit 5 lakh commuters daily. The entire journey on the Green Line is estimated to be covered in 45 minutes including the stoppages.
On the first working day, following the inauguration of the Green Line, the metro rail network clocked a ridership of more than 3 lakh enthusiastic passengers. This surge in ridership led by working professionals in the IT/ITeS sector, is an indication that finally the metro is solving the commuters’ problems to some extent in a city notorious for its traffic woes. Effective 16 June, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) also revised the fares by 10-15 per cent, which translates to an average rise of Rs 5 though the minimum fare between two immediate stations remains at Rs 10. However, Varshik (annual) cardholders will get a 15 per cent discount on travel fare, which applies to both cumulative and consolidated fares.
After a successful phase 1, BMRCL seems to be on track to complete the phase 2 by 2020. The 72.1 km phase 2 of Namma Metro, estimated to cost Rs 26,405 crore, will connect the lines covered under phase 1 with the peripheral areas of the city. It will have 61 stations, of which 12 are underground stations.
In 2016, BMRCL launched the Metro Mitra App, an Android app that provides all necessary information to commuters for planning their trip between any two places within Bengaluru using the Namma Metro Rail service.
The completion of the phase 1 along the Green Line will bring some respite to the commuters battling respiratory ailments and the worsening traffic conditions in the city. However, the focus now needs to be on timely completion of the phase 2 and connecting all corners of the city. A well-connected metro rail network across Bengaluru and its periphery seems to be the only way out to solve the burgeoning transportation challenges of lakhs of people in the IT capital of India.
