Experts from IISc caution tunnel road project could spell disaster

Tunnel roads won't alleviate congestion or combat air pollution in city

Instead metro as a mode of transportation would be an optimal solution

The proposition of tunnel roads in Bengaluru has been advocated by the state government as a remedy for the city’s traffic issues. But, this has been contested by experts from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), who caution that it could spell disaster for the area.

The project, according to their report, would not alleviate congestion or combat air pollution within the city.

Part of the inputs for the Brand Bengaluru concept, the report was submitted to the government on September 5. Despite this, Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru Development Minister DK Shivakumar announced on October 5 that tenders would be invited for the “ambitious” project within 45 days.

Professor Ashish Verma, convenor of the Sustainable Transportation Lab at the IISc, stated to The New Indian Express that the stretches the government is proposing for tunnel roads are akin to those of the earlier north-south and east-west elevated corridor project.

According to him, a simulation model study of these stretches has been conducted, revealing that the Metro, as a mode of transportation, would be an optimal solution.

The researchers examined three models along the proposed corridor – one without tunnel road construction, one with tunnel road construction, and one with the Metro constructed in lieu of the tunnel road. These models were analyzed for the years 2020 and 2030.

The IISc study, utilizing the simulation model, further emphasized that if tunnel roads were constructed, the number of fatalities due to accidents per year is anticipated to escalate to 1,069 by 2031. Conversely, it would decrease to 830 with the implementation of the Metro and its extensions, without the inclusion of tunnel roads.