Bengaluru airport corridor hits 1 lakh vehicles a day, Sadahalli toll now busiest in Karnataka

Traffic on the KIA corridor has surged 52% in a decade, pushing Sadahalli toll plaza past the 1-lakh daily mark as NHAI races to upgrade roads, underpasses and toll lanes.

The drive to Kempegowda International Airport has turned into one of Bengaluru’s most congested stretches, with the Sadahalli toll plaza crossing 1 lakh vehicles every single day. Once considered a smooth airport route, the corridor is now under immense pressure as rapid urban growth pushes unprecedented traffic into the stretch.

Data from the Bengaluru-Hyderabad highway shows how sharply numbers have climbed. In 2015, the plaza recorded about 67,000 vehicles daily. A decade later, the volume has surged by 52%, making Sadahalli the busiest toll gate in Karnataka, ahead of Electronics City, which handles around 75,000-80,000 vehicles.

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The spike is closely linked to the expansion of Bengaluru’s northern region. Large residential townships, tech campuses, industries and new commercial zones along Ballari Road have transformed the airport corridor into a dense urban spine. The Satellite Town Ring Road (STRR), connecting Hoskote and Dabaspet to Devanahalli, has added even more vehicles to the stretch.

Despite the airport opening 17 years ago, KIA still lacks a mass transit system such as a Metro link, forcing passengers to rely heavily on taxis and personal cars. With 40.7 million passengers and 723 daily flight movements handled last year, traffic on the ground continues to climb alongside air travel numbers.

Traffic counts at Sadahalli have risen steadily: 75,000 vehicles in 2020, 88,070 in 2023, and 98,000 just six months ago. Now the plaza consistently crosses the 1-lakh threshold. The toll point is estimated to generate over ₹1 crore in daily collections. Interestingly, wait times here remain shorter than at Nelamangala or Hoskote, though officials admit the stretch urgently needs upgrades.

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NHAI has begun preparing major expansion works. A new underpass at Sadahalli junction will replace the existing traffic signal. Once this is completed, old toll buildings will be demolished and 4-5 additional toll lanes will be added at a second level to ease peak-hour blocks.

Another major upgrade is a new cut-and-cover service road near the Yelahanka Air Force Station, cleared by defence authorities, with work expected to begin by February or March. To improve safety, streetlights will be installed along an 8-km stretch beyond the Nandi Upachar junction, an area that has rapidly urbanised on both sides of the highway.

Officials say the combination of soaring car ownership, new IT parks closer to KIA, recent STRR connectivity and fast-growing residential clusters has created a persistent choke point at Sadahalli. With airport traffic projected to grow further, the corridor’s infrastructure is now being pushed to its limits, making upcoming upgrades critical for smoother movement.