The much anticipated metro stretch between Whitefield to KR Puram is set for launch in March this year. Thousands of daily commuters, most of them tech professionals working in and around Whitefield, may finally be liberated from their commuting woes.
The KR Puram to Whitefield 13-km stretch is a part of the Baiyappanahalli-Whitefield corridor (Purple line extension) under Phase I. Once operational, the Metro trains on this route with 12 stations, will cover the distance between Whitefield and KR Puram in 23-24 minutes, BMRCL managing director Anjum Parwez told
“Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) is currently running trial runs on the 12.75-km line with two six-coach trains at a speed of 25 kmph” said BMRCL MD Anjum Parwez.
This is expected to be followed by a safety inspection by the commissioner of Metro rail safety before the stretch is thrown open for commercial operations. In October last year, the trial run between Whitefield and KR Puram was conducted with one train.
The completed Byappanahalli-Whitefield stretch will include stops at Whitefield, Channasandra, Kadugodi, Pattandur Agrahara, Sadarmangala, Nallurhalli, Kundalahalli, Sitharama Palya, Hoodi Junction, Garudacharpalya, Saraswati Nagar and KR Puram.
Since the short 2.5-km leg from KR Puram to Baiyappanahalli is likely to take a few more months to complete, the BMRCL will operate bi-directional feeder services between the stations to benefit metro passengers.
As this stretch seamlessly connects the IT corridor Whitefield and with most of Bengaluru,metro ridership is expected to increase by 3.5 lakh .
The 15.25 km Purple Line extension project has repeatedly faced delays due to legal conflict between environmental and local authorities, over the relocation of around 60 trees near Benniganahalli Lake.
The construction of the project will be carried out by the ITPL according to the designs approved by the BMRCL. Its predicted that the project will benefit over 55,000 employees working on the ITPB campus to access their office straight from the metro station without crossing the road. This is the first such agreement on the Baiyapanahalli-Whitefield line, a release from the BMRCL said.
