Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway Upgrade: NHAI Announces Rs 158.81 Crore Additional Work To Enhance Connectivity

Additional work amounting to Rs 158.81 crore will be undertaken on the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway starting from November this year, according to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

After inspecting the expressway in Mandya on Saturday (29 July), Siddaramaiah informed that the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will commence the additional work once the necessary approvals have been obtained.

This work will encompass the pending tasks related to service roads, bypasses, exits and entry points.

It is anticipated that these tasks will be finished by March of next year.

Expressing his concerns, Siddaramaiah stated that the expressway was opened for traffic prematurely without completing all the necessary work, including road safety measures, reports The Hindu.

In light of the numerous accidents that have occurred on the expressway, the installation of speed detectors has resulted in a decrease in the number of accidents from 20 in June to five in July.

The expressway has implemented safety measures, such as cameras, to monitor vehicle speed and detect violations related to lane discipline, seat belt usage, and drivers on call. The police will take action against any traffic violations occurring on the expressway.

Initially, speed detectors were installed at two locations on the expressway. However, Siddaramaiah suggested installing speed detectors every 10 kilometres to further reduce accidents.

Regarding the complaint about toll collection starting before the completion of work, Siddaramaiah clarified that the toll collection is done by NHAI and not the state government. Nevertheless, he assured that he would discuss the issue with Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari during their meeting in New Delhi.

The NHAI's proposal for additional work is anticipated to be approved within the next one or two months and is scheduled to be undertaken in October-November.

Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway

The 10-lane expressway (two-lane service roads on both sides) was conceptualised and executed as two distinct packages: 58 km Phase-1 between Bengaluru and Nidaghatta and 61 km Phase-2 between Nidaghatta and Mysore.

The 118 km long project has been developed at a total cost of around Rs 8,480 crore.

The expressway will reduce the travel time between Bengaluru and Mysuru from around 3 hours to about 75 minutes. It will act as a catalyst for socio-economic development in the region.

The expressway comprises of 8-km-long elevated corridors, nine major bridges, 42 minor bridges, 64 underpasses, 11 overpasses, four road-over-bridges (ROBs) and five bypasses.

The expressway comprises six bypasses at Bidadi (7 km), Ramanagara and Channapatna (22 km), Maddur (7 km), Mandya (10 km) and Srirangapatna (7km).

The expressway originates near the NICE Road on the outskirts of Bengaluru and terminates near the Outer Ring Road junction in Mysuru.