Local commuters in Bengaluru have a good news. South Western Railway (SWR) has proposed the development of a 287-km-long circular rail network on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
The project aims to start more local train services in this circular line that will alleviate congestion on existing rail networks, and complement the Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project (BSRP) and Namma Metro. The rail line will link important locations like Devanahalli, near Kempegowda International Airport, and Heelalige, close to various industrial areas and satellite towns such as Doddaballapur and Hoskote.
SWR General Manager Sanjeev Kishore told that the Ministry of Railways has granted permission to conduct the Final Location Survey (FLS) for the double-line circular rail network based on SWR’s proposal. The proposed network will connect Nidvanda, Doddaballapur, Devanahalli, Malur, Heelalige, Solur, and Nidvanda, with the goal of increasing Bengaluru’s rail capacity and reducing congestion in its current railway network to accommodate future needs.
The FLS, which costs Rs 7.2 crore, will include surveying the alignment, mapping stations, determining land requirements, and assessing civil structures such as bridges. SWR emphasizes that the proposed network will offer affordable and convenient train services that complement the suburban rail network and the city’s Metro rail system.
The network is expected to alleviate congestion on existing railway lines by reducing the load on long-distance trains through the operation of Memu / Demu trains. This will benefit commuters from satellite towns who travel to Bengaluru on a daily basis. Dedicated trains will operate in both directions on the entire 287-km line.
“Currently, trains traveling from the Salem line to the Mysuru line, and vice versa, have to pass through the busy Byappanahalli-Bengaluru Cantonment-Bengaluru city section. Due to severe congestion within the city, trains, including express trains, are delayed. In the existing arrangement, goods trains can only operate during late-night hours, when passenger services are minimal. This forces goods trains to be regulated outside the city, resulting in wasted hours and underutilization of crew.
To address this issue, it is proposed to connect Hejjala with Heelalige through a peripheral line,” a rail official told.The line capacity utilization within the city limits reaches up to 110% during peak hours. The KRIDE (Rail Infrastructure Development Company (Karnataka) is currently implementing 148 suburban rail networks, while the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) plans to operate Namma Metro, covering a distance of 175 km by 2025 and expand it to 314 km by 2040.