Bengaluru tunnel road unscientific, poses flood risk: IISc expert panel

The proposed tunnel road from Hebbal to Silk Board in Bengaluru has been termed “unscientific” by an Indian Institute of Science (IISc) expert panel, which has also warned that the project could increase the risk of flooding. The panel, led by Prof Ashish Verma, has submitted its report on the project to the Governor, amid a heated debate over its feasibility and impact.

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The panel has also found the proposed tunnel road significantly more expensive than a Metro line on the same route. According to BV Santosh Kumar, a member of the IISc expert team, the tunnel road would cost nearly six times more per passenger than the Metro.

Metro offers cheaper alternative

Speaking to The Federal Karnataka, Santosh Kumar said the team assessed the feasibility of the tunnel road by comparing data from the government’s detailed project report (DPR) with data available from earlier studies at their laboratory.

“The tunnel road is a massive project involving an investment of thousands of crores of rupees. Before investing such a huge amount, it is essential to examine whether it will actually benefit the public or not. After all, we are using taxpayers’ money here,” he said.

The project was initially planned to cover 18 kilometres but was later restricted to a 2.5-km stretch from Hebbal to the Veterinary College. The IISc team analysed the revised proposal and compared the likely impact of constructing a tunnel on the existing road with that of introducing a Metro line along the same route.

According to the analysis, a Metro on the proposed route would cost 86 paise per passenger, compared with Rs 5.36 per passenger for the tunnel road. “In other words, constructing the tunnel road would cost six times more than the Metro,” Santosh Kumar said.

‘Prioritise Metro, not tunnels’

He said the key consideration in the analysis was whether the tunnel road would actually benefit the common people.

“The government should think carefully rather than waste public money. Large investment projects such as tunnel roads should not be viewed merely as short-term solutions. Planning must take into account their long-term consequences,” he said.

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For Bengaluru, Santosh Kumar said, the priority should be to complete public transport projects, particularly Metro connectivity, rather than focus on tunnel roads.

“Metro connectivity should have been provided first, and only after assessing how much it reduces traffic congestion should the government have considered a tunnel road. My main view is that the tunnel road project should not have been taken up in the first place,” he said.

(This article was originally published in The Federal Karnataka.)