News Detail

<p style="text-align:justify"><span style="color:#696969"><span style="font-size:11px"><span style="font-family:arial">The promise of a 20 minute ride between the Kempegowda International Airport and the Hebbal flyover is on the verge of becoming a reality.&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="color:rgb(105, 105, 105); font-family:arial; font-size:11px; line-height:1.6em">Air travellers heading to and from the KIA had a pleasant surprise on New Year&#39;s Day, as a section of the ambitious expressway on the route was thrown open to the public.</span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="color:#696969"><span style="font-size:11px"><span style="font-family:arial">On Wednesday, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) threw open, without any fanfare, the first section of the six-lane elevated expressway along the Bellary Road and leading to the airport from Hebbal flyover to Kogilu Cross, after Yelahanka. The section spans a length of 3.7 Km.&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="color:rgb(105, 105, 105); font-family:arial; font-size:11px; line-height:1.6em">NHAI chief general manager A K Mathur told that the two other sections of the expressway will be ready and thrown open to the public in 15 days.</span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="color:#696969"><span style="font-size:11px"><span style="font-family:arial">The expressway&#39;s two other sections span about 600 odd metres and are located beyond Kogilu Cross and at Vidyanagar.</span></span></span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="color:#696969"><span style="font-size:11px"><span style="font-family:arial">The NHAI has said that on the completion of the expressway, the travel from Hebbal flyover to the airport will be a 20 minute affair.&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="color:rgb(105, 105, 105); font-family:arial; font-size:11px; line-height:1.6em">Mathur also said the asphalting of the expanded leg of the Hebbal flyover is yet to be completed. The expansion of the flyover is part of the NHAI plan to upgrade the road to the airport.</span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="color:#696969"><span style="font-size:11px"><span style="font-family:arial"><strong>The Hiccups</strong></span></span></span><br /> <span style="color:rgb(105, 105, 105); font-family:arial; font-size:11px; line-height:1.6em">The elevated section is part of the project to upgrade the stretch of National Highway 7 (NH-7) between Hebbal flyover and the trumpet intersection leading to BIA. Widening of service roads and the Hebbal flyover leg leading to the airport and the toll plaza at Sadahalli are all part of this upgradation project.</span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="color:#696969"><span style="font-size:11px"><span style="font-family:arial">Work on the elevated expressway came to a halt in February-March 2013 after the contractor Navayuga Engineering Company faced financial problems. The original deadline of the project was April 2013.&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="color:rgb(105, 105, 105); font-family:arial; font-size:11px; line-height:1.6em">The project costs INR 600 crore and is taken up on a design, build, finance, operate and transfer model which means that Navayuga will create this infrastructure, recover its expenditure on the same and then transfer it to the government after 32 years.</span></p> <p style="text-align:justify"><span style="color:#696969"><span style="font-size:11px"><span style="font-family:arial">Source-On Request</span></span></span></p>