Bengaluru’s Hebbal-Sarjapur Metro project cost cut by ₹2,920 crore after expert review

The 37-km Hebbal–Sarjapur Metro corridor’s cost has been revised from ₹28,405 crore to ₹25,485 crore after a detailed reassessment by French consultancy SYSTRA.

Bengaluru’s ambitious Hebbal-Sarjapur Metro corridor is set to move ahead at a lower price tag, with the project cost trimmed by nearly ₹2,920 crore. Initially estimated at ₹28,405 crore, the 37-km corridor will now cost ₹25,485 crore, averaging ₹689 crore per km, following a detailed review by experts.

Approved by the Karnataka government in December 2024, the corridor’s proposal is currently under consideration by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). The ministry had directed the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) to get its cost estimates independently reviewed before final approval.

French consultancy firm SYSTRA was engaged to conduct the reassessment. The firm vetted the costs, re-evaluated underground station lengths, and compared construction benchmarks with other metro projects across India. These revisions, coupled with minor land acquisition changes and optimisation in the underground section, led to the significant cost reduction.

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While the project’s total length and station count remain unchanged, featuring 17 elevated and 11 underground stations, there are slight alterations in the route design. The elevated section has been adjusted from 22.14 km to 21.995 km, while the underground stretch has been marginally extended from 14.45 km to 14.63 km. The corridor will operate six-car train sets from the start.

Connecting Sarjapur, one of Bengaluru’s major tech and residential hubs, with Hebbal, a key northern junction, the line will pass through Koramangala and the Central Business District. The alignment is expected to significantly ease east–west traffic congestion and improve accessibility between Bengaluru’s IT corridor and the city’s northern suburbs.

BMRCL expects the Union government’s nod by the end of the 2025-26 financial year, paving the way for early construction works. In parallel, the corporation has floated tenders worth ₹6.86 crore for geotechnical investigations across four packages under Phase 3A.

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The Hebbal-Sarjapur Metro will follow a shared funding model, with 20% contributions each from the Central and State governments, while the remaining 60% will come from external borrowings and development loans. The project was first announced in the 2022–23 Karnataka Budget by then Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and formally included in Phase 3A in mid-2024.

According to the Detailed Project Report (DPR), the line will run elevated between Sarjapur and Koramangala 3rd Block (15 stations), go underground from Koramangala 2nd Block to Veterinary College (11 stations), and emerge again with elevated stations at Ganga Nagar and Hebbal.

Once completed, the Hebbal-Sarjapur Metro is expected to be one of the city’s most crucial corridors, linking key employment zones and reducing pressure on arterial roads like Outer Ring Road and Hosur Road.

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