Mysuru-Bengaluru Expressway NH-275: Last-mile works on Mysuru side begins

Mysore/Mysuru: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has taken up the last-mile works on the Mysuru side of the 10-lane Mysuru-Bengaluru Access-Controlled Expressway (NH-275). The works were pending even though the rest of the Highway and bypasses have been completed and have been opened for traffic.

Works are under brisk pace to meet the February-end deadline and at present, the focus of the works are Siddalingapura and Kalasthawadi. There is an old bridge near Kalasthawadi that is being demolished and will be rebuilt after altering the alignment. The earlier bridge was narrow and congested and when it rained heavily, water used to enter the nearby houses.

According to the officers from the NHAI, the water flowing under the bridge will be diverted so that there is no problem either to the houses or to the Highway even if it rains heavily. “We are using technology to build concrete blocks under the bridge to divert the water. The old bridge was not in a position to withstand the pressure and as such, we decided on the alignment change,” officers said.

The concept of alignment change has been successfully implemented at many places on the Expressway and here too, the same technology is being used. The diverted water from the bridge will join a duct that is further down the Expressway, officials explained. “As the Expressway comprises six-lane and four service roads, we had to extend the bridge to accommodate the road structure. The work will be completed in another 20 to 25 days,” officers added.

The second part of the work is to build a retaining wall to a canal at Siddalingapura. This particular canal carries water from the Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) Dam to the fields in and around Siddalingapura. “Here too, there is a need for a wider space to accommodate the road and the service roads. The retaining wall will prevent water from entering the Expressway,” the officers explained.

Meanwhile, reports from Bengaluru say that the 117-km Expressway developed under the Union Government’s flagship Bharatmala Pariyojana, will be officially inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the first week of March.

With most portions of the Expressway open for vehicular traffic, the opening of the Mandya and Srirangapatna bypasses recently marked the completion of the project. The NHAI expanded National Highway 275, including the Expressway, to a 10-lane road. The Expressway, from the NICE Road entrance in Bengaluru to Ring Road junction in Mysuru, is expected to cut travel time from an average of three hours to just 90 minutes.

Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha said it will be officially inaugurated in March first week by PM Modi. Most parts of the stretch are already open and vehicles, including KSRTC buses that are taking close to two hours between  the two cities.

It will be a tolled road but the quantum of toll has not been fixed yet though the NHAI has announced earlier that the first phase of the toll collection will begin by Feb. 15 on the Bengaluru-Nidaghatta stretch.