One-way loops, not flyover, for Koramangala

Is there no alternative to a 2.4-km flyover from Kendriya Sadan to Ejipura main road in Koramangala? As the government pushes ahead with this project, residents have proposed two clear seamless closed one-way loops, a solution that entirely negates the need for a flyover.

The flyover is designed as a bi-directional, four-lane road, to be built at a cost of Rs 208 crore by January 2019. But going by the experience of all other flyovers in the city, residents say this too will end up as a temporary, ‘band-aid’ solution destined to destroy the green aesthetics of Koramangala 100-ft road.

Loops explained
So, how does the loop alternative work? One of the architects behind this plan, Prashanth Srinivas, explains: At Sony World junction, the intermediate ring road from Indiranagar will branch out into two one-way loops. The left loop will curve along 80-ft Road and turn right at its junction with Sarjapur Road.

This loop will then move along Sarjapur Road before turning right at the Sarjapur Road-100-ft Road junction near Indian Institute of Astrophysics towards Sony World Junction.

The right loop from Sony World Junction will move along 80-ft road and turn left towards 20th Main Road near Koramangala Indoor Stadium. At the Forum Mall junction, the loop will take another left turn towards Hosur Road and turn left again at its link with Sarjapur Road near St John’s Hospital.

At the Sarjapur Road-100-ft Road junction, the right loop joins the left loop. Taking the 100ft road, the two loops run parallel before reaching Sony World Junction. “The loops will not only double the traffic capacity of the roads but also make available an additional lane to run an AC hop on–hop off bus loop,” says Priyadarshini D, another Koramangala resident behind the plan.

Piece-meal approach
The residents are convinced that the proposed flyover is part of a piece-meal approach. The flyover will be an inefficient solution increasing the 100-ft Road’s capacity only by about 40%. “It may become congested within a short span of five-six years, given the rate of increase in traffic density that the city has been seeing,” they said in a letter addressed to Bengaluru Development Minister, K J George.

The flyover, they said, is a “sub-optimal solution with no long-term prospects”. The project does nothing to deter the incentivisation of private transport over public transport. To back this contention, they drew attention to the Mysuru Road flyover. “It has never been able to carry BMTC buses on such an important arterial transit.”