The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) conducted a trial run between Kengeri and Challaghatta on Mysuru Road, as part of the extended purple line.
The trial runs took place on Saturday (29 July) from 11.27am to 4.15pm, with the trains operating at a speed of 10 kmph. This two km line is an important addition to the Mysuru Road route.
Another trial run was conducted by the BMRCL between Baiyappanahalli and K R Pura on the same line, located in the eastern part of the city. This stretch covers a distance of approximately two km and completes the missing link of the Whitefield line, which was inaugurated in March.
By August, the BMRCL plans to open the entire Purple Line from Challaghatta to Kadugodi (Whitefield), spanning a distance of 43 km.
The missing link between KR Pura and Byappanahalli has caused inconvenience for many passengers, especially tech professionals commuting to areas such as Mahadevapura, ITPB, and Kadugodi.
Once the missing link is completed, office-goers will have the option to live in more affordable areas near Challaghatta and commute to their workplaces in Whitefield and surrounding areas.
The opening of the entire east-west corridor will drastically reduce travel time for passengers, making it a game-changer for the city’s mobility landscape.
According to Parwez, it will take approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes to travel between Challaghatta and Whitefield (Kadugodi), whereas covering the same distance by bus or cab usually takes more than two hours during peak time.
The BMRCL estimates that an additional 80,000 to 90,000 people will utilise the Namma Metro services once commercial operations commence on the entire line.
The completion of the Byappanahalli-Whitefield Metro section, an extension of the Purple Line, was originally scheduled for December 2020 but experienced delays due to various reasons.
Due to South-Western Railway’s insistence on using an OWG instead of a composite girder for the Metro’s rail crossover at Benniganahalli, the KR Pura-Byappanahalli section experienced additional delays. These delays were further exacerbated by steel shortages.