Bengaluru: After a five-year delay in the doubling of the Mysuru-Bengaluru track, the South Western Railway is working overtime to electrify the track between Yeliyur (near Mandya) and Mysuru. Once the electrification is complete, the double track will be open after an inspection by the Commissioner for Railway Safety. Trains are likely to ply on the electrified double track from Nov. 2017.

Railway authorities who are undertaking the double tracking works got a shot in the arm after the 223-year-old armoury built by Tipu Sultan was shifted clearing the way for the 1.5 km double tracking works. After shifting the armoury at a cost of Rs. 13.6 crore, work is on to finish the doubling project.

The track doubling works should have been completed at least five years ago. The project that began in 2003 was completed in phases with the 11-km Ramanagaram-Channapattana stretch becoming operational in 2010, followed by Mysuru-Naganahalli section next year and Channapatna-Shettihalli stretch a year later. The last stretch to be commissioned was Pandavapura-Naganahalli as Tipu’s armoury continued to delay the second track at Srirangapatna.

According to Railway authorities, most of the civil work has been completed and the double track is expected to be commissioned by Nov. this year. On the electrification, works between Yeliyur and Mysuru is almost complete and works in the Mysuru yard and the new bridge across River Cauvery in Srirangapatna was in progress.

As part of doubling, a total of 11 level-crossing gates (3 unmanned and 8 manned) have been eliminated with construction of road over/under bridges, which will play a major role in eliminating accidents on tracks.

The electrification of the Bengaluru-Mysuru track will reduce the time required to change locomotives at Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna (KSR) city Railway Station in Bengaluru. Two daily and four weekly trains to Mysuru which arrive with electric locomotives have to be stopped for about 15 minutes at KSR to attach a diesel locomotive. Electrification of tracks will save this time and effort. The track doubling, however, will not cut the travel time. The maximum difference may be about five minutes.