Now, BBMP plans shoulder drains to check waterlogging

 After the introduction of milling machines to get rid of potholes, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has decided to make shoulder drains along major main roads to prevent the accumulation of water on the roads.

Since they are built along the whole stretch of the road, these drains will help in preventing waterlogging and will also help in reducing the number of potholes.

These shoulder drains will be built right next to the footpath and will be about one foot wide. A slope will be created since the depth of the drain will be about 25 mm near the road and 40 mm near the footpath. This slope will facilitate water flow into these drains.

“This shoulder drain is impervious and it allows the rain water to flow into the main drain. This has two advantages — the waterlogging is less and eventually the number of potholes will also be reduced since the water will not accumulate on the road which will make the road wet and lead into a potholes after heavy rains,” said B S Prahallad, superintending engineer, road and infrastructure, TVCC.

There is a similar system in Delhi where the shoulder drain will lead to an underground tank that collects water.

Apart from the shoulder drain work, the milling process of potholes has also begun in the city at Ballari Road. “This is not filling up of potholes but complete removal of potholes since the milling process involves removing the potholes and a whole new layer of asphalting will be done. The commuters will now have a smooth ride since there is no patch work,” explained Nandish J R, executive engineer, TEC, BBMP.

He also said that the road will be more durable since it will be levelled and the dust will be removed.

This process is cheaper than tarring the road. “It takes around Rs 300 per sq ft to lay tar but this process costs about Rs 145 a sq ft,” said a senior BBMP official.