Bangalore metro: Hurdles crossed, some lingering regrets

As Namma Metro finally hits the track, Bangaloreans seem to have something to preen over, at long last. There was much to be endured before the trial runs of the train became a reality, but few spectators who gawked at the train on its trial run on Sunday recalled the chaos on city roads.

Many civic analysts and town planners have pointed to the dangerous curves that the train will take. Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) also had to put up with adverse publicity as the accidents during construction were widely covered in the media.

Re-routing of traffic as metro construction progressed, and the poor maintenance of stretches of road caused many motorists to complain. CMH Road, closed to traffic since April 2005, only re-opened for two- and four-wheelers recently; heavy vehicles are still barred.

With the underground stretch of the metro under construction at Cubbon Road, Vidhana Soudha, KR Circle opposite Central College and Majestic Kempegowda Bus Station, traffic re-routing disrupts smooth flow.

Reach Two, extending from Magadi Road to Mysore Road, and Reach Three, from Swastik Circle, Malleswaram, to Yeshwantpur, are other areas where roads have suffered the brunt of ongoing metro construction.

The BMRCL has also faced legal hurdles, as petitions from those who stood to lose  property piled up in the courts. Ever since April 2005, the metro corporation has had to deal with a steady train of litigation.

The next trial run is scheduled for January 28, when the train will run on the other track.