Suburban train likely to bring down travel time and traffic snarls in Bengaluru

By Naveen Meneze
BENGALURU: If one is exasperated by the slow-moving traffic to Whitefield from the city's centre, one could try this from January 16: The Bengaluru division of South Western Railway (SWR) is introducing a new electric train -a mainline electric multiple unit (MEMU) -in the next fortnight.

The train also connects the city to Ramanagaram, the silk capital of Karnataka, located 50 km from the city on the Bengaluru-Mysuru road.

The proposed train will be a boon to professionals who commute to Whitefield from the city . The train originates at the Bengaluru City Railway Station. While it makes one trip to Whitefield in the morning at 8.45 am, the train will make three trips to Ramanagaram from the city railway station on six days a week except Sunday . The train also connects Kuppam of Andhra Pradesh from city in the noon via Baiyappanahalli and Whitefield.

Right now, the Bengaluru Railway Division operates three MEMU trains, six diesel electric multiple unit (DEMU) and as many as 27 conventional passenger trains. Each DEMU and MEMU train has eight coaches and has a carrying capacity of over 1,000 passengers.

Earlier, the Marikuppam-KR Puram electric train was extended up to Baiyappanahalli inside the city, and the Kolar-Bengaluru train was extended up to Channapatna, making train travel possible for a greater number of suburban commuters.

As indicated by the #chukubukubeku campaign, there are many more train services that are clear alternatives to the traffic snarls on the city's roads.

As of now, there are 31 train services towards Whitefield, 22 services towards Doddaballapura, 19 services to Mysuru, 21 services to Tumukuru and 12 services towards Hosur from Bengaluru City. Data show that about 65 to 70 lakh people use these trains every month.

Metro to Step up Speed Soon
Shortly, commuters can reach Baiyappanahalli from the Mysuru Road metro station -a distance of 18 km -in 33 minutes flat. The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) plans to increase the speed of trains from 45 kmph to 55 kmph, which will reduce the total journey time by 5-8 minutes. Currently, a metro ride on this stretch takes around 40 minutes.